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<p><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In 2012, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources published an in-depth assessment of the full costs, benefits, opportunities and challenges to expanding household take-back programs in
 Wisconsin. The study established a baseline collection rate against which future programs can be measured and compared costs of the current take-back program with those in Canada and Europe. 
<br>
<a href="http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/HealthWaste/documents/2012HouseholdPharmStudy.pdf">Wisconsin Household Pharmaceutical Waste Collection: Challenges and Opportunities<span class="links"><span style="color:blue"> [PDF]</span></span></a>  (The PDF is large, so
 you may wish to view it on line instead of downloading it.) <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The report’s discussion of costs starts on page 7 (page 12 of the PDF).  Based on 2010 data, the total documented
 program cost of mail back programs was $18.40 per pound, compared to permanent and one day collection programs whose total cost was roughly $8 to $10 per pound.  Due to economies of scale, I suspect the cost of collection programs has gone down since 2010,
 whereas mail-back programs costs may be about the same.<br>
<br>
Some have advocated that disposal pouches can treat pharmaceutical waste and could be more cost effective.  Are there independent tests of these pouches that can confirm or deny any claims that the pouches permanently inactivate the active ingredients of pharmaceuticals?
   And does anyone have figures on the cost per pound of using pouches?  <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#984806">Barb Bickford</span><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:navy"><br>
</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Medical Waste Coordinator and Hydrogeologist<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Waste and Materials Mgt/Environmental Management Division<br>
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources<br>
101 S. Webster St., PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921<br>
Phone: 608-267-3548<br>
Fax: 608-267-2768<br>
barbara.bickford@wisconsin.gov<br>
<br>
</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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