By Steve Elliott
Hemp News
Federal researchers spent most of the week on a working medical marijuana farm in Vancouver, Washington, studying the working conditions and occupational hazards of cultivating and processing cannabis.
The study was the first of its kind because marijuana is still considered a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law, in the same class as heroin and LSD, reports Matt Markovich at KOMO News.
A team of four researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) visited Tom Lauerman's medical marijuana farm east of Vancouver to observe and take notes that could be used to develop federal "best practice" standards for workers in the cannabis industry. The team had never set foot on a legal marijuana operation until now; their previous cannabis experience had been limited to the federal pot farm at the University of Mississippi.
"This is novel for us," said the lead NIOSH researcher, who preferred to remain anonymous.
Researchers gave Farmer Tom and several of his workers electronic air sniffers to study the air quality inside the greenhouses and the processing facility. The researchers also used a glove with sensors tied to a laptop that tracked the repetitive hand movements involved in trimming marijuana.
