Trash better than take-back programs for old drugs, U-M researchers say
Courtesy of U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Researchers from the university published their recent findings in journal Environmental Science and Technology — and determined that out of all the disposal options, including take-back programs and flushing the drugs down the toilet, trash bins have the least amount of negative environmental affects.
The most recent nationwide drug take-back program organized by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration collected more than 500,000 pounds of unwanted prescription medications in April.
In take-back programs, old prescription drugs are incinerated.
The report said that burning the drugs means there are associated greenhouse gas emissions - and with take-back programs, people have to burn greenhouse gases to get to the drop-off location.
Flushing drugs down the toilet allowed the highest amount of drugs to enter the environment, according to the report. Municipal wastewater treatment plants systems do not test or treat the water for such chemicals.
"It's surprising to find out that even though there's this push towards take-back, trash seems to be the best option for several different reasons," said lead author Sherri Cook, of the University of Michigan department of engineering, in an interview with NPR.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration offers the following recommendations for disposing of prescription medications in trash:
- Do not crush tablets or capsules
- Mix them with a substance like kitty litter or used coffee grounds
- Place the mixture in a sealed container like a plastic bag
- Throw the container in the household trash
Amy Biolchini covers Washtenaw County, health and environmental issues for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at (734) 623-2552, amybiolchini@annarbor.com or on Twitter.
Comments
Jtcan
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 3:20 p.m.
I had thouhgt that unused drugs were recycled to charitable foundations as they are in Europe. Maybe that can't happen here. Are we too unsanitary? Or too likely to put in dangerous substances?
E Claire
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 4:57 p.m.
It is illegal here. I tried to give expensive medication to a non-profit and they couldn't take it, even with the bottles still sealed, never opened.
PC Stone
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 11:24 a.m.
why should a company like Novartis be responsible for the environmental impact of medicine in trash. Should the Big Three be responsible for all the junk yards in the country? Should IBM be responsbile for the computers that are in those trash hills? Also, why is there so much unused medication? These people are either prescribed more than they should be, they are not taking their medications as they should be, or something else is going on. Jinxed, you brought up some good questions.
PC Stone
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 11:16 a.m.
Why should a c
Dog Guy
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 4:55 a.m.
Greenest alternative? Freecycle? Craigslist.org? Trading parties? 6th grade science fair projects?
Rugeirn Drienborough
Tue, May 22, 2012 : midnight
Novartis, one of the world's major drug companies, makes around 40 billion dollars a year. You can find their financials online quite easily, since they are publicly traded. They're fairly typical of the kind of money Big Pharma companies make. Why shouldn't they bear the responsibility for taking care of the environmental hazard their products create? They can most certainly afford it.
u812
Tue, May 22, 2012 : 2:39 a.m.
possibly in Canada,here in america the law makers are in the pockets of the RICH.
Ron Granger
Mon, May 21, 2012 : 7:50 p.m.
I am suspicious that this study was authored by my trash collector.
Jinxed
Mon, May 21, 2012 : 5:28 p.m.
Where does the trash go? To the landfill we hope, when the leachate, the liquid at the bottom of the landfill, gets pumped to the wastewater treatment plant where treated and put into the river! Did this research consider that you were already driving to the pharmacy for picking up a scrip? Some pharmacies take back unused drugs. Did this study also consider the substance abuse issue? There are law enforcement agencies that have a drop off program for narcotics.
Meg
Mon, May 21, 2012 : 7:25 p.m.
The publication referenced in the article would likely have answers to your questions.