Guide to Worker Safety and Health in the Marijuana Industry

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) Marijuana Occupational Health and Safety Work Group
• Description:
  At the time of this writing, 28 states and the District of Columbia currently have laws legalizing marijuana in some form. While many studies have focused on health outcomes and public safety issues, little attention has been focused on occupational safety and health associated with this industry. Prior to its legalization, occupational safety and health hazards associated with producing illegal marijuana were documented in published literature and law enforcement reports. Washington was the first state to develop formal guidance for the industry, such as the Regulatory Guidance for Licensed I-502 Cannabis Operations. Our workgroup sought to identify various types of occupational hazards encountered in this industry and build a document to assist the industry and its workforce in building effective safety and health programs for their businesses. Our team included professionals with a variety of skill sets, including epidemiologists, medical doctors, industrial hygienists, safety professionals, and regulatory specialists, which resulted in a thorough review of the potential occupational safety and health issues in the industry. The State of Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division's (MED) Retail Marijuana Code, 1 CCR 212-1 and CCR 212-2, have specific regulations written for the marijuana industry in Colorado. This document is informational only and is not intended to replace or supplement regulations from Colorado's MED Retail Marijuana Code or from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The best practices in this document are suggestions and do not establish any new enforceable regulations by the State of Colorado. Furthermore, this guide is not intended to provide a comprehensive list of existing federal, state, and local regulations that may apply to the marijuana industry. Purpose, scope, and users of the guide - The complicated nature of the hazards present in the marijuana industry highlights the need for careful attention to safety and health at all types of marijuana businesses. The purpose of this guide is to provide an overview of the safety and health hazards that may be present in the cultivation, processing and sale of marijuana. Not all hazards listed in this guide may be present at a given facility. Conversely, there may be additional hazards not listed within the scope of this guide that may be present at a given facility. This guide is intended to provide a starting point for the assessment and evaluation of occupational health hazards. This guide also provides abbreviated guidance and a list of resources to help employers in the marijuana industry develop an occupational health and program. Guide objectives - The objectives of this guide are to: Assist in the recognition of occupational health hazards that might be present within the marijuana industry. Identify specific existing federal, state, and local safety and health related regulations that may apply to the marijuana industry. Provide initial recommendations for engineering, administrative and personal protective equipment controls that can be used to help eliminate or reduce hazards in the marijuana industry. Provide information and resources to assist employers in developing written workplace safety and health programs. Provide information to help develop marijuana worker safety training programs. Description provided by NIOSH
• Subjects:
  • Cannabis
  • Engineering
  • Occupational Exposure
  • Occupational Health
  • Safety
• Keywords:
  • Marijuana
  • Cannabis
  • Occupational hazards
  • Occupational safety and health
  • Regulations
  • Guidelines
  • Engineering controls
  • Safety education
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Guidance
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-66
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068320
• Citation:
  Denver, CO: Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, 2017 Jan; :1-66
• CAS Registry Number:
  • Cannabis (CAS RN 8063-14-7)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  Colorado State Department of Public Health & Environment
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20150701
• Source Full Name:
  Guide to worker safety and health in the marijuana industry
• End Date:
  20210630
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230493/cdc_230493_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.59 MB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:833075331657caa31df31b4889168550c6987e5810b50e6aef61986eb71b3030bb528b4af2966d77a4b7f47bbce793d26197605edbde3254fe3da4b7334273bc