The Lawrence-Scioto Solid Waste Management District held its annual drug take back in Lawrence County Saturday at Ironton Hills Plaza in which more drugs were collected than ever before in the county.

“We ended up with 67 cars coming through,” Dan Palmer, director of the Lawrence-Scioto Solid Waste Management District, said. “We collected 137 pounds of pills, 75 pounds of liquid meds and 65 pounds of sharps. Last year, we had about 45 total vehicles.”

Outdated or unneeded prescription and over the counter medications and sharps were collected and will be disposed of the right way, Palmer said.

“We try to teach people and deter them from flushing these medications,” Palmer said. “When these are flushed, they get into our rivers and creeks and ruin our water. It’s amazing all of the different kinds of meds that are detected in our water system.”

Representatives from the Solid Waste Management District, Lawrence County Sheriff Jeff Lawless and Tyler Walters, vice president of physician services at Our Lady of Bellefonte, were all present to collect the medications.

“We want to recognize Ironton Urgent Care of Our Lady of Bellefonte for providing (pill) containers and containers for the sharps,” Palmer said. “They will also take all of the sharps and properly dispose of them.”

Palmer said the way they collect the medications is one of the reasons people feel comfortable about bringing them.

“It’s something people look forward to,” he said. “The convenience of it is that they just drive up with no questions asked. They don’t have to worry about the names on the bottles and they will all be disposed of properly.”

When people brought medication to the drug take back, they also received a sticker to put on their windows that says “no prescription drugs on premises.”

“It’s amazing how many cars came through this year,” Palmer said. “The sheriff and I were very pleased and surprised with the weather conditions. It was a Lawrence County record.”