A new prescription medicine drop box is now in place at the Lehigh Valley Health Network Cedar Crest Campus to provide area residents with a safe way to dispose of leftover, outdated or no-longer-needed prescription medicines.

The drop box, located in the hallway leading to the hospital's Health Spectrum Pharmacy in the Jaindl Pavilion, near the hospital's main entrance, provides "a safe and secure location that we feel our patients and area residents will feel comfortable using," Craig Finnerty, director of hospital security services said at the unveiling of the drop box Oct. 9.

Lehigh County District attorney Jim Martin said at the press event, "Because of the compounds and heavy metals found in many prescription drugs, it is unsafe to simply flush them down the toilets. In recent years, researchers have found these compounds in our nation's waterways, which is an environmental hazard. It is equally unsafe to throw away unused medications in the trash, because of the potential for illicit use and abuse.

"This provides a way to keep these drugs from ending up in our local water systems, and assures that officers from the Salisbury Police Department will pick them up and see they are safely destroyed," Martin said.

Salisbury Police Chief Allen W. Stiles said the drop box was obtained through grants from the Pennsylvania District Attorney's Association and from state drug and alcohol abuse mitigation programs.

"We already have a drop box at the Salisbury Police Department headquarters on South Pike Avenue and the Emmaus Police Department also has one outside its Jubilee Street headquarters in Emmaus. This provides another convenient and safe location to dispose of medications," Stiles said.

"Until a few years ago, people had few options and there was much uncertainty about how to go about getting rid of these substances," Martin said.

The Lehigh County District Attorney's office several years ago began partnering with police agencies in the county to provide twice-a-year drug collection days at police departments, malls and shopping centers throughout the county.

Since 2009, Martin said, more than four tons of prescription medicines have been collected at these events and have been turned over to the federal Drug Enforcement Agency for incineration.

"This partnership among the Lehigh Valley Health Network, Salisbury Police Department and the District Attorney's office just extends our efforts and gives the public another option to get rid of unwanted medication," Martin said.