Pharmaceutical waste
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Overview
Waste from pharmaceutials and personal care products (PPCPs) are an emerging issue. PPCPs can be introduced into the environment through many routes.1,3,4 Treated and untreated domestic sewage containing excreted PPCPs and their metabolites following human use represents an important source of these compounds in the environment. Other sources which can potentially introduce PPCPs into the environment include: leaching from landfills following disposal of expired and unused products; disposal of expired and unused PPCPs in the toilet; release of unabsorbed externally applied PPCPs (e.g. lotions) to surface waters from activities such as swimming; excreta from animals including pets and other domestic animals; use of sewage solids and manure for soil amendment and fertilization; and industrial manufacturing waste streams.
Environmental Impact
The U.S. Geologic Services has reported that PPCPs such as steroids, prescription and nonprescription drugs, antibiotics, hormones, and fragrances have been detected in water samples collected from streams considered susceptible to contamination from various wastewater sources such as those downstream from intense urbanization or livestock.5 Potential risk to aquatic organisms due to exposure to PPCPs in the environment has been identified as a primary concern given that aquatic organisms may be continually exposed to chemicals, including multi-generational exposures.2,3 There is also concern for subtle effects on ecological receptors when exposed to low concentrations. For humans, consumption of potable water which may contain trace concentrations (in the part per trillion to part per billion) of various PPCPs has been identified as one of the primary potential routes of exposure.5 To date, much research has focused on the potential for pathogen resistance to antibiotics and endocrine distribution by natural and synthetic sex steroids.2,3 At this time, many unknowns remain regarding the potential for adverse effects on ecological receptors and humans from exposure to PPCPs in the environment. As new information becomes available, this will facilitate more detailed evaluations of the potential toxicological significance of the detection of PPCPs in the environment.
Policies and Regulations
Some pharmaceutical wastes are classified as hazardous wastes. Others are medical waste, and still others are nonhazardous wastes. Which category a discarded pharmaceutical falls into depends on its chemical, physical, and toxicological properties and who generates the waste.
Hazardous Properties of Pharmaceutical Wastes and Personal Care Products
A discarded pharmaceutical may be identified as a hazardous waste if it appears on a regulatory list of hazardous wastes or exhibits one of four hazardous characteristics. Listed hazardous wastes include epinephrine, nitroglycerin, and many chemotherapy agents. Characteristics that make a waste a hazardous waste include:
- Ignitability (examples include formulations with more than 24% alcohol, collodion, and oxidizers such as potassium permanganate and silver nitrate)
- Corrosivity (having a pH less than 2 or greater than 12.5)
- Reactivity (one example is nitroglycerin, which is generally exempt from federal hazardous waste regulations)
- Toxicity (containing a regulated substance at a concentration above the limit for that substance, as determined by a laboratory procedure known as the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP). One example would be zinc in some shampoos).
