In another effort of "you really can recycle everything".... Anne Arundel County Police have installed a permanent MedReturn Drug Collection Mailbox in the lobby of the County police Western District office at Route 170 and Route 32. This effort is intended to "collect unwanted or expired household prescription, over the counter and other unused medicines for destruction". Past advice has been to flush your unused medications, or just throw them away. In either case, those medications have the potential to either be consumed by wildlife or enter the watershed and our drinking water. "Recent research by the U.S. Geological Service now confirms that some drugs pass largely unaltered through our wastewater treatment plants and enter our Bays and other waters." Even if, as some studies belive, the levels of these contaminants are too small to be of a concern for human consumption, they still have substantial impact on the fish, crabs and other wildlife in and around the Chesapeake Bay.
Many local jurisdictions have already started prescription drug take back programs where the medications are disposed of properly. Now that we have this resource in our community, please consider using it. Some of the details of the program are below.
• This program is anonymous and no requests for
identification will be made.
• Participants may dispose of medication in its original container or by removing the medication from its container and disposing of it directly into the disposal box. If an original container is submitted, individuals can remove any identifying information from the prescription label.
• All solid dosage pharmaceutical product and liquids in consumer containers may be accepted. Liquid products, such as cough syrup, should remain sealed in their original container. The depositor should ensure that the cap is tightly sealed to prevent leakage.
• Intra-venous solutions, injectibles, and syringes will not be accepted due to potential hazard posed by blood-borne pathogens.
• Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine are not a part of this initiative and should not be placed in collection containers.
• Participants may dispose of medication in its original container or by removing the medication from its container and disposing of it directly into the disposal box. If an original container is submitted, individuals can remove any identifying information from the prescription label.
• All solid dosage pharmaceutical product and liquids in consumer containers may be accepted. Liquid products, such as cough syrup, should remain sealed in their original container. The depositor should ensure that the cap is tightly sealed to prevent leakage.
• Intra-venous solutions, injectibles, and syringes will not be accepted due to potential hazard posed by blood-borne pathogens.
• Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine are not a part of this initiative and should not be placed in collection containers.
No comments:
Post a Comment