Ocean County authorities collect, burn over 5,400 pounds of pills so far this year
(Photo courtesy of the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)
An Ocean County collection and disposal program for unused prescription medication has been a “great success” this year, authorities say.
In the first half of 2015, Ocean County residents have dropped over 5,400 pounds of medication into boxes at municipal police departments, said Al Della Fave, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office spokesman.
County authorities then collected and burned the pills.
Project Medicine Drop is a county-wide initiative to make disposal of unused medications an easy and convenient priority for Ocean County residents. Participating municipals that have easily accessible medication drop boxes at police department entrances include Barnegat, Berkeley, Jackson, Lacey, Lakewood, Little Egg Harbor Township, Long Beach, Manchester, Ocean, Point Pleasant, Seaside Heights, Stafford, Toms River, and Tuckerton.
“Unused medications often end up in the wrong hands, are used illegally, or find their way into our water supply,” Della Fave said. “In the worst case scenarios, these forgotten pain killing medications lead to addiction or teens becoming unwitting drug dealers.”
Authorities destroyed over 2,500 pounds of unused medication during the most recent burn on July 17.
For more information about the initiative, click here.
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