The Stamford Police Department, the State of Connecticut's Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, and the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection encourage all residents to dispose of unused and unwanted medications in a safe manner. 

Do not flush prescription medicines or over-the-counter products down the sink or toilet!

Although using the toilet or sink prevents someone from accidentally taking the medications, disposing of them in this way causes water pollution and has adverse effects on septic systems, sewage treatment plants, fish and other aquatic wildlife. Trace amounts of all kinds of drugs have also been found in some drinking water supplies because they pass through septic systems and sewage plants untreated. 

Dispose of your unused medications in the proper manner for the following reasons:

1. Protecting our Environment

• Research has shown that continuous exposure to low levels of medications has altered the behavior and physiology of fish and aquatic organisms.
• Pharmaceuticals enter our wastewater from a variety of sources, including the flushing of unused medications.
• A nationwide study done in 1999 and 2000 by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) found low levels of drugs such as antibiotics, hormones, contraceptives, and steroids in 80% of the rivers and streams tested.
• The number of teens admitted to treatment programs for addiction to prescription painkillers has tripled since the 1990s. More than 70,000 kids per year under age 18 require emergency room care for medication overdoses. Source: CASA Report

2. Protecting our Children

• 1 in 10 American teens has abused cough medication
• 1 in 5 has abused prescription drugs
• Every day 2,700 teens try a prescription medicine to get high for the first time.
• Teens believe that abuse of Rx and OTC medicines is safer than street drugs.
• 70% of children who abuse prescription drugs admit to getting them from family and friends.

3. The Solution

• Instead of leaving unused medications in your home or disposing of them improperly, residents can bring in unused medications to the Stamford Police Headquarters at 725 Bedford Street.  The staff at the front desk will take them and have them destroyed in an environmentally safe and secure manner.  Residents can drop off their old medications 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  The Stamford Police also host a large drive-through drop-off event 2-3 times per year.