Waste advisor accepts expired medicines

Expired, overstocked and unused medicines can be handed in at the information stand on St. Georgs-Platz in Bocholt on Tuesday, 3 September 2024. The waste consultant from the waste disposal and service company, Petra Tacke, will be there from 9:00 to 12:00 to provide information on the correct disposal of expired medicines and their packaging.

Expired medicines are still too often disposed of improperly, for example by tipping them down the toilet. This leads to environmental pollution, as many drugs are not filtered out in the sewage treatment plant and pollute our waters. The potential risks to humans from this cocktail of medicines cannot yet be assessed. It is therefore important to dispose of expired medicines properly in order to protect groundwater and soil.

Old medicines can be disposed of in the residual waste bin. The recycling centre also accepts them free of charge during opening hours. It is important to dispose of leftover medication in its original packaging and not to mix it. Empty blister packs belong in the yellow bin, cardboard outer packaging and package inserts in the waste paper container.