§ 627-9. Legislative intent.

A. 

This Legislature hereby finds and determines that Suffolk County has demonstrated a commitment to protecting our environment and the health and safety of County residents.

B. 

This Legislature also finds and determines that Suffolk County is located on a sole-source aquifer which supplies the County's drinking water.

C. 

The Legislature also finds that Suffolk County is surrounded by three estuary systems that include numerous harbors and bays that provide recreational and commercial benefits to residents.

D. 

This Legislature further finds and determines that, in recent years, communities across the nation, including New York City, have discovered trace amounts of prescription and over-the-counter medications in their drinking water.

E. 

This Legislature finds that these medications enter water supplies and coastal waters through improper disposal methods which can directly introduce medications into the water supply and surface waters or allow pills to degrade in soil and enter groundwater systems.

F. 

This Legislature also finds that the long-term effects of exposure to these trace amounts in humans is unknown. However, negative effects have been observed in fish, frogs and turtles.

G. 

This Legislature determines that hospitals, nursing homes, hospice facilities and long-term care facilities utilize large quantities of medications in providing health services to those in need.

H. 

This Legislature also finds that these facilities should have an established protocol for the safe disposal of unused and expired medications that protects the County's drinking water supply and the County's rivers, estuaries, bays and the ocean.

I. 

This Legislature also finds that the Environmental Protection Agency and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have issued protocols against flushing unwanted pharmaceuticals.

J. 

This Legislature further finds that ensuring that these facilities have an established policy for the safe disposal of unused and expired medications protects the environment and County residents from any harm they may incur from exposure to medications in the drinking water supply.

K. 

Therefore, the purpose of this article is to require all hospitals, nursing homes, hospice facilities and long-term care facilities to annually establish and file with the Suffolk County Department of Health Services a plan for the safe disposal of unused and/or expired medications.