42.39.310 : WASTE MANAGEMENT - Administrative Rules of the State of Montana

42.39.310 WASTE MANAGEMENT

(1) A licensee must store, manage, and dispose of solid and liquid waste generated during marijuana production and processing in accordance with applicable state and local laws and regulations.

(2) A licensee must store marijuana waste in a secured waste receptacle in the possession of and under the control of the licensee.

(3) Waste that must be rendered unusable prior to disposal includes:

(a) marijuana plant waste, including roots, stalks, leaves, and stems that have not been processed with solvent;

(b) waste solvents used in the marijuana process;

(d) marijuana items that ultimately fail to meet testing requirements.

(4) The allowable method to render a marijuana item unusable is by grinding (for solids) and incorporating or absorbing (for liquids) the marijuana item with other ground materials so the resulting mixture is undesirable, unrecognizable, unfit for human use, and incapable of growth or germination. For whole marijuana plants, the resulting mixture must be at least 50 percent nonmarijuana waste by volume.

(5) For purposes of this rule, "use" includes, but is not limited to, ingestion, inhalation, topical application, processing, or remediation.

(6) Nonhazardous marijuana waste shall be disposed of as follows:

Marijuana Item	Destruction Method	Disposal Method
Marijuana plants	Mix with yard debris, wood chips, sawdust, soil, manure, vegetable-based grease or oils, other wastes	Compost or anaerobic digester, if available, off site
Usable marijuana	Mix with yard debris, wood chips, sawdust, soil, manure, vegetable-based grease or oils, other wastes	Landfill, transfer station, or incinerator, if composing not available or feasible
Liquid concentrate, extracts, or infused products	Absorb in cat litter, slack lime, soil, or similar substance	Landfill, transfer station, or incinerator
Solid concentrate, extracts, or infused products	Mix with soil, slack lime, garbage, or similar substance	Landfill, transfer station, or incinerator

(7) Marijuana testing laboratories, marijuana manufacturers, and other licensees that generate hazardous waste shall follow all applicable rules and regulations for the disposal of hazardous waste, including ARM 17.53.105 and 17.53.113. Licensees need to contact the Department of Environmental Quality Hazardous Waste Program for assistance.

(8) A licensee must maintain accurate and comprehensive records regarding waste material in the seed-to-sale tracking system that accounts for, reconciles, and evidences all waste activity related to the disposal of marijuana to include:

(a) what was disposed;

(b) quantity by weight or volume;

(d) video evidence of disposal to be retained for 30 days; and

(e) reason for the disposal.

(9) A licensee must provide a minimum of 72 hours' notice in the seed-to-sale tracking system prior to rendering the marijuana item unusable and disposing of it.

(10) After the expiration of the 72-hour period in (9), a licensee may dispose of marijuana waste other than usable marijuana as defined in 16-12-102, MCA, without rendering it unusable pursuant to (3) by releasing it to a third-party contractor to render it unusable. A licensee must provide the department with a copy of the waste removal agreement with the third-party contractor before commencing services and must maintain the contract in the binder of documents required by ARM 42.39.105(6). The third-party contractor may process marijuana stalks and stems into non-marijuana products or otherwise render the marijuana stalks and stems unusable.

History: 16-12-112, MCA; IMP, 16-12-103, 16-12-105, 16-12-112, 16-12-203, 16-12-210, MCA; NEW, 2018 MAR p. 321, Eff. 4/10/18; TRANS, from ARM 37.107.413, 2021 MAR p. 765, Eff. 7/2/21; AMD, 2021 MAR p. 1147, Eff. 9/11/21; AMD, 2021 MAR p. 1971, Eff. 1/1/22; AMD, 2022 MAR p. 2027, Eff. 9/24/22.