Police units in pharmaceutical dropoff program grows, Illinois American Water says
From Illinois Business Journal news services
More Madison County and local police departments have partnered with Illinois American Water to implement pharmaceutical disposal programs across southern Illinois.
Illinois American Water donated the pharmaceutical drop boxes, which can be accessed at:
– East Alton Police Department at 211 North Shamrock in East Alton
– Glen Carbon Police Department at 149 North Main St. in Glen Carbon
– Madison County Police Department at 615 Madison Ave. in Madison
– Red Bud Police Department at 200 E. Market St. in Red Bud
Residents are encouraged to drop off their unwanted meds so they can be incinerated, which is the Environmental Protection Agency’s recommended approach for pharmaceutical disposal. Flushing medications down the toilet or the drain as well as throwing them in the trash are discouraged.
“This is a great opportunity for residents to securely drop off unwanted medications,” said Madison County Sheriff John Lakin. “It’s important to keep these items out of the hands of our youth and out of landfills and water supplies.”
Red Bud Police Chief John Brittingham agrees: “We want to do our part to protect our young residents and the environment. By disposing of unused and expired medications, we can all make a difference.”
Through partnership with local pharmacies, police departments and government officials, Illinois American Water has helped to implement 37 pharmaceutical disposal programs.
“These private-public partnerships are a great opportunity to collaborate for the protection of our communities and precious water resources,” said Grant Evitts, Illinois American Water’s senior manager of Production and Field Services for the Southern Division.
The programs were created through P2D2 – a model developed by Pontiac High School students and their teacher Paul Ritter. P2D2 is recognized by Illinois EPA and Department of Natural Resources. In addition, the Drug Enforcement Agency sponsors an annual National Drug Take Back Day.
Through these efforts, hundreds of thousands of pounds of unwanted medications have been disposed. Additional programs are located in Alton, Bartonville, Belleville, Caseyville, Champaign (three sites), Chicago (two sites), Chillicothe, Collinsville, Columbia, Dixon, Fairmont, Freeburg, Maryville, Morrison, Mount Carroll, Mount Vernon, O’Fallon, Orland Hills, Pekin, Peoria (three sites), Peoria Heights, Pontiac, South Beloit, Sterling, Streator, Urbana (two sites) and Waterloo.
