San Bernardino County residents with medical conditions requiring the home use of needles should know that it is now easier to safely dispose of used needles thanks to a change in policy that takes effect today. Reporter Heather Clisby has the details…
Beginning July 1, San Bernardino County residents can safely dispose of needles by creating their own container instead of using the plastic bio-hazard sharps containers previously required. Acceptable alternatives include a leak-resistant two-gallon or smaller non-food container that is sealable, such as a screw-top lid. Heavy-duty plastic containers, such as a laundry soap or bleach bottles, are ideal. Milk containers, water bottles, glass containers and metal cans are unacceptable.
Approved disposal items include used needles, lancets and syringes, though they must be completely dry with no liquid remaining; this also applies to EpiPens.
Once a container is three-fourths-filled, seal tightly and tape the lid closed. An approved bio-hazardous waste label must be placed on both sides of the container. These labels are available at any of the Household Hazardous Waste collection sites and can be downloaded from the San Bernardino County Fire website.
https://www.sbcfire.org/ofm/hhw/HouseholdHazardousWaste.aspx
Once safely secured, the sharps containers can be taken to a county collection facility for proper disposal. For more info, call 909-882-5401 or visit greensb.net.
