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The University of Wisconsin Extension, the state Department of Natural Resources and Capital Returns Inc., which disposes of pharmaceuticals, plan to start a pilot program next week in Waukesha and Winnebago counties.
The program is intended to keep unused prescriptions from entering the water supply when they are flushed down toilets or dumped in landfills.
Such programs are rare due to state and federal drug disposal laws, but there are some in the planning stage elsewhere. Wisconsin’s program will be available to about half a million people in the two counties, organizers said.
Some communities have take-back days, where people bring in their unused drugs for disposal, but this program will be bigger and easier for people to use, said Joanie Burns, chief of the DNR’s Hazardous Waste Prevention and Management Section.
To participate, people will need to call Capital Returns to request a prepaid label. They’ll then ship their unused drugs to the company for free disposal.
“One just has to question if there weren’t this collection program, where would those have gone?” Burns said of unwanted drugs. “There’s clearly a need and people are definitely asking for this sort of thing.”
Controlled substances won’t be accepted, at least not for now. Mary Hendrickson, director of quality and regulatory affairs for Capital Returns, said the program has asked the Drug Enforcement Agency for an exemption so it can accept those substances.
The state also had to relax some requirements so people could ship their drugs through the mail, Burns said.
It’s unclear how long the pilot program will last. That will depend on how many drugs are returned and how much money is spent. The program is being paid for with a $26,000 grant from the DNR and $10,000 from the state’s Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection.
Capital Returns is providing its drug disposal services to the program free of charge. The company, a unit of privately owned GENCO, based in Pittsburgh, handles medical returns from pharmacies and drug manufacturers. It sends the drugs to incinerators for disposal.
It feeds incinerators that generate power and in 2006 created enough energy to power more than 220 homes for a year.
Hendrickson said the Wisconsin program could serve as a model for other states. She said she’s already received inquiries about potential pilot programs in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
The sponsors plan to publicize the Wisconsin program at pharmacies, by talking to people in the eligible counties and by sending letters through school districts.
The state is concerned about contaminants from pharmaceuticals getting into the water supply, Burns said. She cited a recent months-long inquiry by the AP National Investigative Team on the subject. The series released in March disclosed the presence of trace concentrations of pharmaceuticals in the drinking water of at least 41 million Americans and brought the issue to the forefront.
The AP found that while some suppliers screen water for drugs, they usually don’t tell their customers of results showing the presence of medications.
The series revealed how drugs — mostly the residue of prescriptions taken by people, excreted and flushed down the toilet — have gotten into the water supplies of at least 24 major metropolitan areas. The stories also detailed the growing concerns among scientists that this pollution has adversely affected wildlife and may be threatening human health.
Programs like the one in Wisconsin could help cut down on such contamination, Burns said.
“We’re seeing effects on aquatic species,” she said. “The jury is out on the cause-effect relationship. What hasn’t been determined is what could be the long-term effects on human health.”
