Windsor News

The Windsor Police Department will help residents safely dispose of prescription drugs on National Drug Take Back Day Saturday, April 29.

Residents can drop off expired or unused prescription drugs at the Windsor Police Department, 200 N. 11th Street, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 29. The service is in partnership with the Drug Enforcement Administration and is free to the public with no questions asked.

The Police Department cannot accept needles and sharps, mercury (thermometers), oxygen containers, chemotherapy/radioactive substances, pressurized canisters or illicit drugs.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), 52 million people in the United States over the age of 12 have used prescription drugs non-medically in their lifetime. NIDA also found that the top reason teens use prescription drugs is that the prescription medication is easy to obtain at home.

“National Drug Take Back Day gives us an opportunity to safely dispose of potentially dangerous expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs — potentially preventing pill abuse and addiction,” said Chief of Police Richard Klimek. “At the fall Drug Take Back Day, we disposed of more than 200 pounds of prescription drugs.”

National Drug Take Back Day was initiated in 2010 through the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act, which allows an “ultimate user” of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering the medications to authorized entities.

The public is encouraged to utilize the event as a safe way to dispose of medications. Past disposal methods — flushing medications down the toilet or throwing them in the trash — have been found to pose potential safety, health and environmental hazards.