Prescription Drug Take-back and Electronics Recycling Comes to Triton College Tomorrow

By Sebastian James at May 4, 2012 | 9:04 am | Print

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.

On Saturday, May 5th from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm the Cook County Department of Environmental Control and Triton College is sponsoring a free Prescription Drug Take-back program. Citizens will also be able to recycle old electronics as well.

This event is a low-cost, high-value opportunity to tackle a critical environmental issue. The EPA has asked people not to flush old medications, as trace elements have been found in groundwater. Each year, close to 5,000 tons of pharmaceutical and personal care products enter the waste stream. Many survive water treatment processes and end up in drinking water. Medicines improperly disposed of end up in landfills, leading to the potential of accidental overdose by animals and humans.

Residents can drop off unused prescription drugs at 2000 5th Avenue in River Grove. This one-day collection event is sponsored by the Cook County Dept. of Environmental Control and Triton College. For more information, contact Adrian Fisher at the Triton Sustainability Center, 1-708-456-0300 ext.3848; or Cook County Environmental Control( frank.coconate@cookcountyil.gov) at 1-312-603-8217.

Residents should bring only medication items—not items from businesses or doctors’ offices. To ensure anonymity and security, people are asked to black-out all prescription label information. Take prescriptions to the drop off center ONLY during event hours.

Acceptable items include:

Prescription drugs
Over the counter medications
Medicated ointments and shampoos
Liquids containing medication
Sharps or needles
Prescription and over the counter inhalers
Glass thermometers and other instruments that contain mercury

Unacceptable items include:

DEA controlled substances
Narcotics
Illegal drugs
Bio-hazardous materials
Radioactive materials
Other toxic household wastes

Consumer electronics accepted for recycling are:

Computers, peripherals, laptops, monitors, TVs, cell phones, rechargeable batteries, printers, fax machines, MP3 players, portable digital assistants, video game consoles, videocassette recorders/players, digital videodisk players, zip drives, scanners and microwaves.

For more information, contact Adrian Fisher at the Triton Sustainability Center, 1-708-456-0300 ext.3848; or Cook County Environmental Control( frank.coconate@cookcountyil.gov) at 1-312-603-8217.