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<div class=Section1>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>Do let pharmaceuticals leak from landfills<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>Patrick Moore is considered by many “activist groups”,
including Greenpeace, to be an industry sell-out. While I pass no judgment on
this indictment, notice the solution he proposes: He scoffs at the idea of an
industry take back program because 1] It is not necessary because the amount of
drugs is small [though this contradicts his thesis that improper </span><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#4F81BD'>disposition</span><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> is
indeed a problem] 2]it will be <i>costly</i> [to industry?] and 3] be energy
inefficient contributing to greenhouse gasses [though he does not quantify the extent
of this problem…and in other contexts he has dismissed anthropogenic
global warming]. He rather proposes landfilling the drugs [which according to
EPA will leak into groundwater, perhaps converted in form in a stew of other
chemicals] or take to “local collection programs”….where will
such programs then take this material, how will it be disposed, at what cost,
and what efficiency of transport?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>And,
of course note the industry-apologist mantra: “</span><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>It's
important to note that, to date, no risk to human health from exposure to trace
pharmaceutical compounds found in drinking water has been demonstrated in the
scientific literature.” </span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
"Arial","sans-serif";color:#365F91'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#365F91'>No,
of course they have not YET been traced…to human health problems, but
they HAVE BEEN to other organisms. This statement has been used to defend all
sorts of practices such as smoking, asbestos mining, sludge deposition, etc. How
much other environmental damage must occur before we have irrefutable HUMAN
damage? Who is/will be funding the effort to trace them? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#365F91'>The
fundamental issue is do we follow the “precautionary principle”, or
the current “proven innocent” model. Industry responsibility systems
may force the industry to reassess the numbers of redundant drugs, whether all
ailments require a drug treatment, and the appropriate dosage so that they are
metabolized instead of being wasted…such programs do not have to be set
up to be cost or energy-inefficient.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Webdings;color:#76923C'>ş</span><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> Pete
Pasterz, NCQRP<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Cabarrus
County Recycling and HHW<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>PO
BOX 707 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Concord,
NC 28026<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>www.cabarruscounty.us/waste<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><i><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>If
you're not for ZERO Waste, how much Waste ARE you for?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div>
<div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>
pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us
[mailto:pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Melody
LaBella<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, January 21, 2009 12:15 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> pharmwaste@lists.dep.state.fl.us<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [Pharmwaste] Seattle Times Editorial on Pharms<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div>
<div>
<h1><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>Don't
flush pharmaceuticals down the drain</span><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<p class=date><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'>Tuesday, January 20, 2009<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=byline><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'>By Patrick Moore<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=source><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'>Special to The Times<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>AS
a lifelong environmentalist with nearly four decades of activism under my belt
since I helped found Greenpeace in 1971, I've thought a great deal about
environmental health and human safety.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>One
issue that has received a lot of attention recently is the presence of trace
amounts of pharmaceuticals in the environment. Some activist groups have raised
concerns this represents a threat even though the medicines are found at extremely
low levels.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>As
with many other issues, in the case of pharmaceuticals in the environment, it
comes down to this: We must weigh the significant benefits of a healthier
population against potential environmental risks across the landscape.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>The
lives of millions of people around the world have been vastly improved thanks
to the prescribed use of pharmaceuticals. And research is continuing daily for
new cures, at a cost of tens of billions of dollars annually in the U.S. alone.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>It
is also inevitable that a small amount of ingested pharmaceuticals will
eventually show up at trace levels in wastewater, given the human body seldom
metabolizes the entire medicine, and given the improved analytical testing
technologies that have developed over time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>An
even smaller portion — 10 percent — of detectable trace elements in
wastewater are the result of consumers flushing unused prescriptions down the
toilet.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>The
Pharmaceutical Assessment and Transport Evaluation (PhATE) model has been
developed by industry as a tool to estimate concentrations of pharmaceutical
residues in surface waters that result from consumer pharmaceutical use. The
PhATE tool is being used to track compounds in 11 representative watersheds
across the U.S. to model concentrations into the future.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>This
science-based approach is working to continually improve our understanding of
environmental risk from pharmaceuticals. It's important to note that, to date,
no risk to human health from exposure to trace pharmaceutical compounds found
in drinking water has been demonstrated in the scientific literature.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>But
some activist organizations still push for costly and unnecessary controls. In
Washington, Oregon and Illinois, for example, interest groups who believe that
any trace amount of any compound in wastewater must be stopped at all cost are
proposing an elaborate take-back plan.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>This
is wrong for a number of reasons.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>First,
detecting minute trace pharmaceutical compounds in wastewater does not mean
you've identified a problem — or even the risk of a problem. Obviously,
we should not indiscriminately send toxic waste into the environment, yet our
detection methods have become so sophisticated that low levels of nearly
everything are going to be found nearly everywhere. A take-back approach to
eliminate such low levels will be enormously costly, difficult to manage, and
offer no added benefit to human health or safety.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>Second,
a take-back program will likely result in increased greenhouse-gas emissions
from the additional infrastructure and transportation needs the program will
require — all for a new program that, if past take-back subscription
rates are any indicator, will be used by only a small fraction of the public.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>Earlier
this year, industry joined with the American Pharmacists Association and the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in launching the SMARxT disposal program. The
goal of the program is to educate the public about not flushing or pouring
unused medicines down the drain, but instead to use the household trash
disposal or local collection programs as alternatives.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>I
believe a simple education program like SMARxT is far more likely to result in
reduced amounts of pharmaceuticals going into wastewater than the costly
approaches being proposed by some activists.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>I
subscribe to the old scientific maxim that the difference between a medicine
and a poison is in the dose. While in recent years we have drastically
increased — from parts per thousands to parts per million, and currently
parts per trillion — our ability to detect human-introduced compounds in
the environment, it is still important to place things in perspective,
recognizing that the poison is in the dose.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>In
most cases, the best approach an individual can take to reduce
consumer-discarded pharmaceuticals from wastewater is to ensure the substance
is <em><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>never</span></em>
flushed, unused, down the drain.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><em><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'>An adviser to government and industry, Patrick Moore is a
co-founder and former leader of Greenpeace, and chair and chief scientist of
Greenspirit Strategies Ltd. in Vancouver, Canada.</span></em><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class=copyright><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:black'>Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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