Is Dust a Major Concern for the Cannabis Industry?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Is Dust a Major Concern for the Cannabis Industry?

Powder & Bulk Solids explores how awareness of dust-related health and safety issues in cannabis facilities is growing as the industry expands.

John S. Forrester | Oct 14, 2022

Every industry that works with dry, dusty materials encounters a variety of health and safety hazards from airborne pathogens to combustible dust fires and explosions. The cannabis industry is no exception. These hazards will likely receive more attention in the coming months and years after reports emerged this month of the first fatality of a worker in the cannabis industry linked to dust. The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited and fined a licensed marijuana facility in Massachusetts after an employee died in January following exposure to ground dried marijuana.

A non-profit organization representing occupational and environmental health and safety (OEHS) professionals, The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), launched the Cannabis Industry Health and Safety Committee several years ago to explore ways to navigate potential hazards in the cannabis industry. The group is supporting government-backed research on cannabis industry hazards and the distribution of best practices for controlling or mitigating the concerns, as well as employer-employee education outreach programs with state and federal entities to increase knowledge of hazards and how to approach them.

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One sign that regulators and fire safety professionals will pay closer attention to combustible dust risks in cannabis manufacturing operations as the industry matures is that Timothy Heneks, director of engineering services for combustible dust consulting firm Dustcon Solutions Inc., sits on the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) technical committee for NFPA 420, Fire Protection of Cannabis Growing and Processing Facilities. He was named chair of the NFPA 420 Task Group on Drying/Processing in 2022. Another example is that Jason Krbec, sales engineering manager for explosion venting and isolation equipment supplier CV Technology, also serves as a member on the committee.

NFPA started the effort to develop the cannabis industry safety standard in mid-2021 after a previous effort added a chapter specific to marijuana cultivators, processors, and extractors to the 2018 edition of NFPA 1, Fire Code.

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Cannabis Dust Reportedly Kills Worker at Legal Facility

OSHA fined marijuana producer Trulieve $35K after an employee died in January following an incident at a Massachusetts facility.

John S. Forrester | Oct 11, 2022

The first known occupational fatality from cannabis dust occurred at a licensed facility in Holyoke, MA in January 2022, prompting an investigation by the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Local and national news organizations reported this month that the federal workplace safety regulator cited Trulieve Holyoke Holdings LLC for three serious violations and proposed a fine of $35,219 following the death of the employee on January 7.

The worker was grinding cannabis flower and filling pre-rolls in the North Bridge Street facility around 11 p.m. when they “couldn’t breathe” because of “marijuana kief [powdered trichomes],” according to Marijuana Business Daily, citing information from OSHA records. Trulieve identified the deceased person to the publication as Lorna McMurrey. She died several days following the incident.

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[ProfessorGAC]

1. Poorly Engineered Processes

Dust is, indeed, a very pervasive issue, but there have been both engineering and procedural solutions to doing it safely for 40-50 years. At least.
I've done work in several powder product plants and the good ones are meticulous about how they abate dust issues. Others, not so much.
This situation is obviously in the "not so much" category. A $35k fine seems a little light to me.
Just one example of what can happen with dust control issues is this. I drove by this plant several times before the incident. It's near Savannah, GA.
Dust abatement sloppiness resulted in a massive explosion that killed or injured over 50 people.
https://www.csb.gov/imperial-sugar-company-dust-explosion-and-fire/
By contrast, i was at a site that dealt with powdered enzymes and they had someone on every shift whose job was a ride a scissor jack across the process floor and keep dust from building up on the beams that held the roof up. 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

[Chainfire]

2. There is a large growing and processing facility just down the road from me.

When you come in contact with their off-work employees (grocery store or fast food) they reek to high heavens. I don't know if it is dust on their clothes or sap, but I suspect that you could smoke their shirts for a buzz. They smell so strongly that they have a card to present to law enforcement officers to keep them from being abused for the way they smell.

Dust is a problem in a lot of industries. I am particularly familiar with problems with silica laden dust on construction sites. I ended up being fired for complaining about it and then spent the next year in a law suit over it. Non-disclosure agreement prevents me from saying how it turned out except that all parties were satisfied with the resolution.

[Warpy]

3. Any new industry goes through a learning curve

and I'm sure the first small fire, with luck in a filter that wasn't changed in a timely manner, will alert them that there is a problem.

I strongly suspect the first place to experience problems will be where hemp is processed into CBD.

They do need to provide respiratory protection to people refining cannabis into THC rich products. I say this who saw a lot of farmers over the years getting a little buzzed when they had their crop hanging up to dry in their homes.