Waste » Business » Needle/Syringe/Sharps » Needles/Syringes/Sharps
Each year, 8 million people across the country use more than 3 billion needles, syringes, and lancets—also called sharps. People at the greatest risk of being stuck by used sharps include sanitation and sewage treatment workers, janitors and housekeepers, and children. It is against WA State law to dispose of syringes and needles in your trash bin.
Commercial sharps are accepted at the Waste to Energy Facility from 7:30 am to 5:00 pm. Needles must be in approved containers. Customers will weigh in on the residential scales and proceed to the tipping floor. The Sharps dumpster will be located on the residentkal tipping floor just inside the main door. Check in with attendant for disposal directions. Customers will proceed to scales to weigh out and pay as normal.
Improper management of discarded needles and other sharps can pose a health risk to the public and waste workers.The Coalition for Safe Community Needle Disposal offers several types of safe disposal programs. Instead of placing sharps in the trash, self-injectors are encouraged to use any of these alternative disposal methods:
- Drop Box or Supervised Collection Sites: Sharps users can take their own sharps containers filled with used needles to appropriate collections sites: doctors' offices, hospitals, pharmacies, health departments, or fire stations. Services are free or have a nominal fee. Check with your pharmacist or other health care provider for availability in your area.
- Mail-Back Programs:Sharps users place their used sharps in special containers and return the container by mail to a collection site for proper disposal. This service usually requires a fee. Fees vary, depending on the size of the container. Check with your health care provider, pharmacist, yellow pages, or search the Internet using keywords "sharps mail back."
- Syringe Exchange Programs (SEP):Sharps users can safely exchange used needles for new needles. Contact the North American Syringe Exchange Network at (253) 272-4857 or online at www.nasen.org
