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More Work on Waste on Horizon RII was recently asked to participate in the Sustainability & Science/Policy Work Group meeting focused on regulations addressing packing and waste associated with cannabis products in Colorado. Executive Director Derek Smith attended the August 11 meeting and was encouraged by the State of Colorado’s leadership in promoting cannabis sustainability and the…

In August, RII Technical Director Gretchen Schimelpfenig spoke on a panel at the Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (MEEA) webinar Exploring Energy Efficiency in the Cannabis Industry. Gretchen joined experts from energy efficiency program implementers and utilities working in New England, the Midwest, and California including Kyle Booth from Energy Solutions and James Yerke and Taylor…

RII on Panel with Massachusetts, Illinois and California Representatives On August 26th, RII Executive Director Derek Smith spoke on a panel at the DesignLights Consortium’s webinar Incentives vs. Regulations – What Do They Mean for Product Selection?. He joined experts from states with legalized cannabis markets including Massachusetts, Illinois, and California including Thao Chau from…

Highlighting facts and proposing a collaborative path forward California’s cannabis industry has recently been contemplating the Statewide Codes and Standards Enhancement (CASE) Team’s proposed code change proposals to the Energy Code as market actors assess potential impacts on cultivation operations. With a statewide cannabis market in disarray and the industry calling for a significant overhaul…

Executive Director Derek Smith discussed energy standards and Board Member Jen Amann presented about codes On Thursday, July 23, RII Executive Director Derek Smith hosted Energy Standards: The Missing Piece for Scale and Sustainability, a roundtable held twice during the day-long virtual Indoor AgTech Innovation Summit, a unique platform to develop new business and accelerate…

Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission Addresses Definitions, Eligible Equipment, and Exemptions Horticultural Lighting Power Density Calculations Clarified On July 17, 2020, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission released a list of frequently asked questions with associated answers to clarify the market's understanding of regulations and the ways cultivators can comply with them. The answers to questions #4…

RII Hosts Sustainability Roundtable at Virtual MJBizConNEXT Dialogue Ranged from Energy to Water to Waste On Wed., July 1, Executive Director Derek Smith joined MJBiz’s John Schroyer in leading an open dialogue on “What sustainability practices are you implementing at your company” as part of MJBiz’s mid-year “NEXT” conference. The conversation began with questions about…

Allocating Cannabis Taxes to Communities Impacted by the War on Drugs As conversations about defunding police departments mount across the country, RII is focusing on our collective opportunity to influence the reallocation of cannabis taxes. In Portland, Oregon, 45% of cannabis taxes go to the police, and while a portion is to be provided to…

DesignLights Consortium Releases Draft Horticultural Lighting Technical Requirements v2.0 RII invites you to provide feedback on the recently released first draft of the DLC Horticultural Lighting Technical Requirements V2.0. V2.0 continues the transition from using traditional lighting metrics to using horticultural-specific metrics that better represent horticultural lighting performance, and should increase the quantity and quality…

New PowerScore Service Launched for Massachusetts Cultivators As of July 1, Massachusetts cannabis cultivators can use a unique portal of RII’s Cannabis PowerScore to easily report, benchmark, and improve performance of their greenhouses and indoor facilities. The upgrades were funded by Massachusetts Dept. of Energy Resources in coordination with the Cannabis Control Commission’s specification of…

Tighten your belt to ensure survival and reduce operating costs today and beyond   The president of an RII member company that manufactures cultivation HVAC equipment recently let us know that during the downtime presented by coronavirus, they have taken the opportunity to upgrade to highly efficient LED solutions for their business’ offices. An especially…

Advice for State and Federal Governments Looking to Incorporate Energy Guidelines in Cultivation Licensing Peer-reviewed Guidance for State and Federal Lawmakers   There are a number of opportunities for state and federal agencies, and, to a certain extent, utilities, to influence the cannabis industry with effective targeted policies. These suggestions are organized by time frame:…