• Cannabis must be destroyed or aggregated with a material that renders it “unusable and unrecognizable.” Though this term has no official legal definition, cannabis must, at minimum, be removed from all packaging and rendered unusable.

• Cannabis product waste shall be maintained in a secured receptacle or area until properly disposed of.

• Licensees must dispose of any cannabis product that is beyond its expiration date, damaged, deteriorated, contaminated, or otherwise deemed not appropriate for sale.

Quarantine/Remediations/Recalls/Returns 

• Written procedures must be established to track all quality assurance concerns and complaints, including, but not limited to, procedures for rapid notification to the licensees’ supply and distribution chain in case of recall. This must include notification to OCM within 24 hours of learning of a serious adverse event. 

• Typically, jurisdictions consider marijuana flowers, stalks, roots, trim, leaves, residue, and wastewater to require hazardous waste removal.

States like Washington, one of the first to legalize recreational cannabis, dole out punishments of up to $15,000 per week for improper waste management and disposal. Failure to comply with state regulations could also result in cannabis license revocation. 

A cannabis testing facility in Massachusetts agreed to pay $225,000 The Framingham facility admitted that an employee put marijuana waste in an unlocked dumpster over four days in January. The commission also found the lab’s records did not properly document how 7,520 samples were disposed of.

Not following proper disposal practices can lead to numerous consequences.