BANGOR (AP) – The University of Maine’s Center on Aging will launch a program this fall to help consumers get rid of leftover prescription drugs in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.

The program aims to have people put unused prescription or over-the-counter drugs in pre-addressed, postage-paid pouches and mail them to the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency for disposal, most likely through incineration. The pouches will be available at many pharmacies.

Officials say the program, targeted primarily at senior citizens and their caregivers, would be the first of its kind in the nation. It will launch in four counties – Penobscot, Cumberland, Kennebec and Aroostook – and could be expanded early next year.

If all goes well, it could become a model for other states, said Lenard Kaye, director of the Center for Aging.

“We hope to see this rolled out nationally,” Kaye said.

Warnings have been sounded in recent years for the public to stop flushing their unused drugs after rivers, streams and even some public water supplies began testing positive for trace amounts of pharmaceuticals.

Biologists have become concerned that pharmaceuticals can affect fish and other aquatic species. Sewage treatment plants are designed to treat waste and eliminate potentially harmful microorganisms but are ill-equipped to filter out prescription drugs.

Kaye and Jennifer Crittenden, a research associate at the center, are finishing the details with the U.S. Postal Service, the Maine DEA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies involved in the program.

“This is the first time it has ever been done in the country and we are basically writing the rules of how it is going to happen,” Crittenden said.

Officials said Maine is a good place to test the program because of its older population and rural character. The program is being funded with a $150,000 grant from the EPA and a matching state appropriation.

Copy the Story Link