I had to laugh when I heard this.... from all the problem with drugs that we are facing.... I never thought this would be a problem
GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Wisconsin communities are holding prescription drug collections for the first time this year to prevent the medicines from entering local streams or being stolen and misused.
It's after environmental scientists are finding prescription drugs like antidepressants and pain relievers in local lakes and streams.
Researchers continue to study the long-term impact on fish and humans.
Brown County's solid waste program will hold the second collection in the state on Tuesday and Wednesday after a collection in Marshfield. Milwaukee and Madison are planning similar collections.
"People have been told to pour it down the drain or garbage because you don't want someone stealing it," said Wess Damro, the county's recycling coordinator. "But there have been surveys showing presence of drugs in what people thought were pristine waters."
Some treatment plants like Green Bay Metropolitan Sewage District are not designed to remove pharmaceutical chemicals. Drugs that are pitched in the trash can leak in landfills.
The Brown County collection is designed for residents with less than 2.2 pounds of unwanted pharmaceuticals, not for large-quantity medical facilities. The collected drugs will be incinerated.
Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District's collection is planned for Sept. 16 at Miller Park, said spokesman Bill Graffin. It's only for Milwaukee County residents.
"We don't want people flushing these drugs or pouring them down the drain until we know all the effects," Graffin said.
www.greenbaypressgazette.com
26-06-2006, 21:24
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