[Pharmwaste] Teasting Leachate for Pharmaceuticals

Sue Dayton sdayton at swcp.com
Wed Sep 17 06:39:59 EDT 2008


Hi Steve:

 

I am with an environmental group here in NC and we work on a number of
issues that include land application of sewage sludge, medical waste
incineration, and landfills - all of which include pharm waste as a primary
contaminant of concern. 

 

I'm extremely interested in your leachate findings. This is important
research that looks at the fate and transport of pharm waste that will
hopefully lead to finding safer disposal alternatives for pharm waste. We
would appreciate if you would keep us posted and send the link to your
studies when they are published. Thanks, and keep up the good work! 

 

Also, good point about the methods that utilities use for sampling!

 

Best - 

 

Sue Dayton

Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League

North Carolina Healthy Communities Program

PO BOX 44

Saxapahaw, NC 27340

(336) 525-2003

sdayton at swcp.com

 

 

 

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
-  Martin Luther King Jr.

 

 

 

  _____  

From: pharmwaste-bounces at lists.dep.state.fl.us
[mailto:pharmwaste-bounces at lists.dep.state.fl.us] On Behalf Of Stephen
Musson
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 9:43 PM
To: Marta Keane
Cc: pharmwaste at lists.dep.state.fl.us
Subject: Re: [Pharmwaste] Teasting Leachate for Pharmaceuticals

 


I wanted to mention a few things about the recent articles and to address
the question on leachate testing.  Pharmaceutical disposal was the topic of
my dissertation which I completed this year, specifically in landfills.

 

Leachate testing - Yes, testing has and continues to be conducted.  For my
dissertation at the University of Florida completed earlier this year, we
sampled ten landfills in the state of Florida for 10 pharmaceutical
compounds and compared those results with other wastewater treatment plant
inputs and with laboratory experiments on degradation in landfills.  The
papers are currently submitted to journals for review and hopefully
publication soon.  Additionally, myself with the University of Florida, the
USGS, and the EPA are now working to conduct a national survey of leachate
for many more compounds.  However, we are doing this without funding and are
asking for landfills to volunteer a fee to include analysis for the pharms
and many other standard leachate parameters.  So please, if anyone may be
interested or knows a local agency/landfill that may, please pass along the
word and my contact information.

 

As for the latest AP stories, I think the AP has done a great job in raising
public awareness but have done a poor job with being complete in their
description.  The AP failed to adequately describe their methods.  They
conducted no scientific study of their own.  They simply asked utilities and
researchers if they had looked and what did they found.  Therefore, for
example Philadelphia, which had done a fairly comprehensive study of their
water, looked terrible because they reported so many compounds.  While
others like Austine Texas, who only looked for a few, looked good by
reporting nothing found.  In fact, I would prefer to live in Philadelphia
since it appears they care enough to be looking.

 

They also published an article about the regulations.  While I agree the
regulations are restricting, I believe they also misrepresented the facts
and national policies as well.  Perhaps we need to get involved in this
issue more to make sure the public gets accurate information.

 

Steve


Stephen Musson, Ph.D., CHMM, CIH
2736 Cox Lane
Cincinnati, OH 45209
(513)833-1479

--- On Tue, 9/16/08, Marta Keane <mkeane at willcountylanduse.com> wrote:

From: Marta Keane <mkeane at willcountylanduse.com>
Subject: [Pharmwaste] Teasting Leachate for Pharmaceuticals
To: pharmwaste at lists.dep.state.fl.us
Date: Tuesday, September 16, 2008, 5:30 PM

Over the past ten years, have there been any studies of the liquid that
comes
out of landfills, known as leachate, to learn the amount of pharmaceuticals
it
contains?  Have there been any studies or further testing of the treated
leachate that eventually is released into fresh water sources, such as
streams
and rivers?
 
Marta Keane, Recycling Program Specialist
Will County Land Use - Waste Services
58 E. Clinton Street, Suite 500
Joliet, IL  60432
815-774-4343
mkeane at willcountylanduse.com
Recycle at home and at work!
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