Medical supplies and pharmaceuticals pose a potential risk to both the environment and the public. Services are available to assist in disposing of these unwanted materials.

Medical Sharps

Sharps may include:

• Glass tubes and slides
• IV tubing with needles attached
• Lancets
• Needles
• Scalpel blades
• Syringes

These items cannot go in the garbage, as they pose a safety risk to workers, and need to be taken to an appropriate collection site.

Disposal Options

• Metro’s Sharps Disposal and Container Exchange Program
• Safe disposal of medical syringes: sharps container exchange program
• Deseche sus jeringuillas médicas de manera segura
• Metro's Household Waste Collection Events    

Pharmaceuticals

Do not put medication down the drain or flush it down the toilet. Medication does not belong in sewage treatment plants or our streams and rivers.

Disposal Options

At Home

• Pills and capsules: Add a small amount of water to them so they are not usable. Then disperse them throughout your garbage.
• Liquids: Add an absorbent material, such as flour or kitty litter, recap the bottle, and put it in the garbage.

Metro

Metro's hazardous waste facility or collection events. Pills should be out of original containers and placed loose in a plastic bag. Call Metro for more information at 503-234-3000.