Students research collection of unused prescriptions

Date: 1/13/2010

Jan. 13, 2010.

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor



CHICOPEE -- Should the city have a program that would accommodate the safe disposal of unwanted prescription and over the counter medications? That's the issue being addressed by the Bellamy Middle School REACH program.

Last week, Veronique Blanchard Smith, the solid waste coordinator for South Hadley, spoke with a group of eight graders about South Hadley's program.

Blanchard Smith explained the idea that flushing unwanted or out-dated medications down the toilet or grinding them up and disposing of them with used coffee grounds -- both commonly suggested procedures can result in polluted waterways. She said South Hadley collects medications twice a year when the town sponsors a hazardous waste drive.

People are asked to register in advance of the drop-off and the names are blacked-out on pill bottles to protect one's privacy.

The collected medications are stored by the police and then are taken to a nearby waste incinerator to be destroyed. The medications are brought to the incinerator by two police officers, a member of the Board of Health and Blanchard Smith.

Blanchard Smith called the effort "a very serious business."

She added that legally the recipient of the prescriptions are the only people who are supposed to be able to turn over the medications, but noted there are many instances in which the spouse or caregivers of a deceased person must do so.

The students asked a battery of questions after Blanchard Smith's talk in their effort to acquire the information to try to start a similar program in Chicopee.

Blanchard Smith said starting a program in Chicopee would have to involve the Police Department, local pharmacies, and the Board of Health, among other organizations. When asked about the cost for the collection, she said the company that operates the town's landfill subsidizes South Hadley's program. The budget for the hazardous waste program is about $5,000 annually, which does not include the cost of the incineration of the drugs.

The town has had the program for about five years, she added.

Publicizing the collection in advance is important she stressed. Each hazardous waste drive the town sponsors takes about two months of advance planning, she said.

When asked how she would improve the program, Blanchard Smith said she would like to see a year-round collection at the Police Department.

One student asked her what she though the impact of the program was on the environment. Blanchard Smith replied, "Every little bit helps."