Wendy Patoprsty and State Board of Investigations special agent Wade Colvard fill a 55-gallon drum Saturday at the Watauga County Sheriff's Office. Photo by Holt Menzies

by NASH DUNN
News Reporter

High Country residents had a chance to properly dispose of household pharmaceuticals and toxins Saturday during Watauga County Hazardous Waste Collection Day, a two-event occasion that included Operation Medicine Cabinet (OMC) and Household Hazardous Waste Day (HHW).

OMC, the High Country’s first drug take-back program, collected unused or expired pharmaceuticals at all three Watauga County Food Lion locations and the Seven Devils Town Hall.

Law enforcement representatives from the Boone Police Department, Watauga County Sheriff’s Office and the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation were on-site to collect and organize the pills into different categories.

Boone Police Officer Toby Ragan said both over-the-counter and controlled substances were collected, and Oxycodone, Fentanyl and Darvocet were prevalent. The drugs will be held by the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office until they are incinerated through the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.

Because OMC is an amnesty program, attendees dropped off pharmaceuticals free of charge with “no questions asked.”

OMC volunteer Joan Hern greeted attendees at the U.S. Highway 321 Food Lion location and said there was a “good turnout” and they were receiving pills “for differing reasons.”

“People want to do the right things and this gives them a chance to do it,” Hern said. “This is how to get rid of [drugs] safely.” 

Photo by Holt Menzies

HHW, a separate event from OMC, took place at the Watauga County Landfill and focused on collecting toxins such as paint, pesticides and herbicides.

The Watauga County Sanitation Department joined with Clean Harbors, a national provider of environmental services and hazardous waste disposal, to stage the semi-annual HHW, Watauga County Recycling Coordinator Lisa Doty said.

Doty said citizens were asked to stay in their cars while HHW workers unloaded the different toxins for safety reasons.

Based on the type of toxin, the materials will be incinerated by Clean Harbors or distributed to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture (NCDA).

“The paint goes to our Chattanooga facility to be turned back into powder for re-use,” Clean Harbors Worker Todd Sceaffer said. “NCDA treats all the pesticides and herbicides so they can be re-used.”

Photos by Holt Menzies  |  Chief Photographer

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Show/Hide comments