Steve Doyle, Chairman of the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors, recently recognized Service Fishery Biologist Mark Steingraeber and Franciscan Skemp Healthcare Vice-President Joe Kruse for their support in helping the county establish a legitimate and environmentally safe program to collect and dispose of unwanted medications. Photo credit: La Crosse County.

Plaque presented to La Crosse NFWCO Fishery Biologist Mark Steingraeber by Steve Doyle, Chairman of the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors, in recognition of support for the county administered program to safely collect and dispose of unwanted medications. Photo credit: USFWS.

At its last scheduled meeting in 2007, the La Crosse (WI) County Board of Supervisors formally recognized two collaborators who played keys roles during the year to help the county establish a permanent program to collect and dispose of unwanted medications in an environmentally safe manner. 

La Crosse County Board Chairman Steve Doyle began the December 20 meeting by presenting commemorative plaques of gratitude to Mark Steingraeber, a fishery biologist at the La Crosse National Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office, and Joe Kruse, a vice-president at Franciscan Skemp Healthcare.  Doyle acknowledged the key role and support these individuals provided to help the La Crosse County Solid Waste Department establish this innovative and environmentally conscious program, which is also providing a new source of revenue for this local unit of government. 

To date, the county-administered program has collected and prevented more than three tons of unwanted medications from entering regional surface waters.  This effort has likewise prevented the possible misuse or abuse of these unwanted pharmaceuticals.  The La Crosse Medication Disposal Program received a Program Innovation Award from the North American Hazardous Materials Management Association earlier in 2007 and plans to serve as the disposal vendor for unwanted medications collected in 34 (or more) of Wisconsin’s 72 counties in 2008.  

Because of recent media reports that described the occurrence of medications in surface waters around the nation, public attention has been focused on adverse effects that low level concentrations of drugs in the environment can have on some species of  fish and wildlife.  It has also raised new concerns among millions of Americans about the safety of drinking water supplies.  The La Crosse County Medication Disposal Program could serve as national model to foster partnerships in other communities that help protect the integrity of local watersheds.

Visit http://www.co.la-crosse.wi.us/Audio/2007.htm to hear a brief audio recording (minutes 3:15 to 6:20) of comments made by Doyle, Steingraeber, and Kruse at the December 20 La Crosse County Board of Supervisors meeting.