Unused or expired medications that are thrown in the trash can still end up in drinking water, according to a study by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.
It found minute amounts of discarded drugs in water at three landfills in the state, the Associated Press reported. This landfill water, called leachate, eventually ends up in rivers. Many communities across the United States draw their drinking water from rivers.
Maine lawmakers are currently considering a bill that would force drug makers to create and pay for a program to collect unused prescription and over-the-counter drugs from consumers and dispose of them.
"People need a way to properly dispose of their drugs, and they're not getting it right now," Mark Hyland, director of the state Department of Environmental Quality's Bureau of Remediation and Waste Management, told the AP.
Maine is among more than a half a dozen states considering a "take-back" bill for medications. The Maine bill has won committee support and awaits further action. If enacted, it would be the first of its kind in the United States.
The bill is opposed by the drug industry lobby group, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the AP reported.
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