Factories dumping drugs into sewage

[babylonsister]

Factories dumping drugs into sewage
Samples taken contained opiates, a barbiturate and a tranquilizer

updated 21 minutes ago


Federal scientists testing for pharmaceuticals in water have been finding significantly more medicine residues in sewage downstream from public treatment facilities that handle waste from drugmakers.

Early results from two pivotal federal studies compare wastewater at treatment plants that handle sewage from drugmakers with those that do not. The studies cover just a small fraction of the 1,886 pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities counted in a 2006 U.S. Census report.

In one study, samples taken at two treatment plants down the sewer line from drugmaking factories contained a range of pharmaceuticals — among them opiates, a barbiturate and a tranquilizer at "much higher detection frequencies and concentrations" than samples taken at other plants, according to preliminary research by the U.S. Geological Survey.

One drug, the muscle relaxant metaxalone, was measured in treated sewage at concentrations hundreds of times higher than the level at which federal regulators can order a review of a drug's environmental impact.

more...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30267705/

[ensho]

1. this is hugely important and should be in every day's news reports

nt

[underpants]

2. I thought the tap water was more fun lately

:silly:

That is outrageous but not all that surprising.

Check out AM2PAT

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5478030&mesg_id=5478030

[Mnemosyne]

3. We are so poisoned, corporations need to pay to chelate the entire world.

imho

[tomreedtoon]

4. What a waste of good drugs.

Can't they be recycled? Or given to animals? Or just washed off and given to poor patients? Heck, they could be used in weapons to kill pirates. You should never throw anything useful away.

[reggie the dog]

5. this is a big problem in the EU too

as well as people thowing out drugs in landfills or down the toilet. They contaminate the water...........not good stuff.

[theophilus]

6. This is very important and I can't find it in the "Latest News" page. This impacts us all and

there should be a huge outcry here on DU. Why do these stories seem to just "disappear"? I hope whistles will be blown and the laws will be enforced or changed to stop this poisoning of Nature and Us! Enough is too much! Thanks for posting.

[L0oniX]

7. ...and this water is being used for making diet cola and also relabeled as being spring water.

[Reterr]

8. K&R.eom

[tabbycat31]

9. well they advise consumers to dispose of drugs by flushing

Big Pharma should be given a huge bill for water cleanup.