(1) Solid and liquid wastes generated during cannabis production and processing must be stored, managed, and disposed of in accordance with applicable state and local laws and regulations.

(2) Wastewater generated during cannabis production and processing must be disposed of in compliance with applicable state and local laws and regulations.

(3) Wastes from the production and processing of cannabis plants must be evaluated against the state's dangerous waste regulations (chapter 173-303 WAC) to determine if those wastes designate as dangerous waste. It is the responsibility of each waste generator to properly evaluate their waste to determine if it is designated as a dangerous waste. If a generator's waste does designate as a dangerous waste, then that waste(s) is subject to the applicable management standards found in chapter 173-303 WAC.

(a) Wastes that must be evaluated against the dangerous waste regulations include, but are not limited to, the following:

(i) Waste from cannabis flowers, trim and solid plant material used to create an extract (per WAC 314-55-104).

(ii) Waste solvents used in the cannabis process (per WAC 314-55-104).

(iii) Discarded plant waste, spent solvents and laboratory wastes from any cannabis processing or quality assurance testing.

(iv) Cannabis extract that fails to meet quality testing.

(b) Cannabis wastes that do not designate as dangerous shall be managed in accordance with subsection (4) of this section.

(c) A cannabis plant, useable cannabis, trim and other plant material in itself is not considered dangerous waste as defined under chapter 173-303 WAC unless it has been treated or contaminated with a solvent.

(4) Cannabis waste that does not designate as dangerous waste (per subsection (3) of this section) must be rendered unuseable following the methods in subsection (5) of this section prior to leaving a licensed producer, processor, or laboratory. Disposal of the cannabis waste rendered unuseable must follow the methods under subsection (6) of this section.

Wastes that must be rendered unuseable prior to disposal include, but are not limited to, the following:

(a) Waste evaluated per subsection (3) of this section and determined to not designate as "Dangerous Waste."

(b) Cannabis plant waste, including roots, stalks, leaves, and stems that have not been processed with solvent.

(c) Solid cannabis sample plant waste possessed by third-party laboratories accredited by the WSLCB to test for quality assurance that must be disposed of.

(d) Other wastes as determined by the WSLCB.

(5) The allowable method to render cannabis plant waste unuseable is by grinding and incorporating the cannabis plant waste with other ground materials so the resulting mixture is at least 50 percent noncannabis waste by volume. Other methods to render cannabis waste unuseable must be approved by the WSLCB before implementation.

Material used to grind with the cannabis falls into two categories: Compostable waste and noncompostable waste.

(a) Compostable mixed waste: Cannabis waste to be disposed as compost feedstock or in another organic waste method (for example, anaerobic digester) may be mixed with the following types of waste materials:

(i) Food waste;

(ii) Yard waste;

(iii) Vegetable based grease or oils; or

(iv) Other wastes as approved by the WSLCB.

(b) Noncompostable mixed waste: Cannabis waste to be disposed in a landfill or another disposal method (for example, incinerator) may be mixed with the following types of waste materials:

(i) Paper waste;

(ii) Cardboard waste;

(iii) Plastic waste;

(iv) Soil; or

(v) Other wastes as approved by the WSLCB.

(6) Cannabis wastes rendered unuseable following the method described in subsection (4) of this section can be disposed.

(a) Disposal of the cannabis waste rendered unuseable may be delivered to a permitted solid waste facility for final disposition. Examples of acceptable permitted solid waste facilities include:

(i) Compostable mixed waste: Compost, anaerobic digester, or other facility with approval of the jurisdictional health department.

(ii) Noncompostable mixed waste: Landfill, incinerator, or other facility with approval of the jurisdictional health department.

(b) Disposal of the cannabis waste rendered unuseable may be managed on-site by the generator in accordance with the standards of chapter 173-350 WAC.

(c) A record of the final destination of cannabis waste rendered unuseable.