On Saturday, September 25 2010 there’s going to be
National Drug Take-Back Day at a location near you.
Can’t happen soon enough, if you ask me.
Today, seven students at a North Carolina middle school face criminal charges after trading prescription narcotics at school.
These 11 to 13 year-old kids were raiding their home medicine cabinets and sharing them with their friends. What a way to make new friends.
Now before you freak out and start flushing the old stuff down the toilet – here’s some important news.The EPA says prescription, over-the-counter, AND veterinary drugs have been discovered in river water near you.
No joke.
Very few water treatment plants can actually filter out these chemicals.
Part of building green is having healthy water quality both inside and outside.
So instead of flushing old drugs, turn them in, or mix them with yucky coffee grounds or cat litter and throw them in the trash.
Keep in mind your tap water probably comes from a water treatment plant that was built decades ago. Take Fayetteville for instance, we’ve got two water treatment plants- one built in 1942 and the other in 1969.
When they pulled Cape Fear River water back 68 years ago, do you think they had this dissolved-drugs problem?
Nope. (Sure the Plants meet the Federal minimums now, but still the they aren’t designed for removing this stuff.)
So, if you enjoy drinking the cleanest water possible at home, you’ll do this: Turn in your expired, unused or unwanted prescriptions to your local Police or municipal office:
- If an original medicine container is submitted, you are encouraged to remove the label.
- Liquid medicine products should remain in their original container with the cap tightly sealed.
- All collected medication will be turned over to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency for proper disposal.
- Intravenous solutions, injectables and syringes will typically not be accepted due to the potential hazard posed by blood-borne pathogens.
Plus, getting rid of old medicines protects your family from accidental poisoning (and maybe even prosecution).
This is a Win-Win-Win – What are your thoughts?
