Lewis County Public Health & Social Services is hosting a drug take-back day in Morton and Centralia this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Centralia’s event will be held in the Centralia Middle School gym at 901 Johnson Road and Morton’s will take place at the Morton Police Department at 250 Main Ave.
The medication take-backs provide free lock boxes for drug disposal and will feature resource fairs with local businesses, service organizations and nonprofits, according to a flier from public health.
“These events are an opportunity for community members to dispose of unused or expired or unwanted medications,” said Sara Bumgardner, a public health employee, during a Tuesday morning meeting at the Lewis County Courthouse. “People can drop them off with no questions asked.”
Drug take-backs are intended to prevent abuse of prescription medications and to protect drinking water, which can become contaminated when medications are disposed of improperly.
According to the Department of Ecology, medications have been discovered as pollutants in water and soil in the Pacific Northwest, which threatens the health and safety of both wildlife and people.
Fliers for the events advertise protecting both the environment and one’s family members. Unused or expired opioid prescriptions, for example, have the risk of falling into the wrong hands, Bumgardner said.
“One of the things we know about prescription drug misuse is that, most often, people get them from friends or family,” she said. “So you can keep your loved ones safe by disposing of medication.”
