Medical needles appearing in Nova Scotia's waste processing systems

Some people who work in recycling and waste diversion say more sharps — medical needles used for injections — are ending up in Nova Scotia's waste streams and they think it's time for provincial regulations.

Robert Matheson, who manages a waste facility in Kemptown, N.S., for the Municipality of the County of Colchester, says an estimated 1,800 needles or sharps showed up over the summer at six recycling facilities and dozens of bottle depots across the province.

"There are a lot of sorters on the lines that are handling this type of recycling materials — bottles and things like that — so the health and safety of this has been a huge pushing point for us," Matheson said in an interview with CBC's Information Morning that aired on Tuesday.

"This is happening at recycling facilities, let alone garbage where we [also] suspect materials are going, so we're really trying to bring more light to this and recommend a better program."

The Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia (PANS) manages the current sharps disposal program to keep used medical needles out of the recycling and waste system. The non-profit doesn't receive provincial support but is voluntarily funded by sharps manufacturers.

According to the PANS website, people who use sharps are supposed to be able to pick up a free Safe Sharps container at a pharmacy, place used sharps such as needles, syringes and lancets in them, seal the lid once the container is almost full and return it to the pharmacy.

Allison Bodnar, the CEO of PANS, told Information Morning that pharmacies are seeing an increased demand for the pails people use to dispose of sharps. She said some pharmacies in the province have run out.

"We've been doing this program for 25 years, occasionally there is a week or two where there is a mismatch for any number of reasons," Bodnar said. "But it feels like over the last few months there's been a sort of increase in demand."

Bodnar said a number of factors may be responsible, including increased need because of flu, COVID-19 and shingles vaccines, and the rise in weight-loss injectables.

She said the producer of the needle pails faced a shipment delay for two weeks so wholesalers didn't have enough to sell, but “we should be back on track shortly.”

Matheson, who is also part of the safe sharps committee with Nova Scotia's regional solid waste co-ordinators, said the committee is recommending an extended producer responsibility program rather than voluntary funding of the sharps disposal program.

He said disposal of waste like paint and batteries is already funded in that manner in Nova Scotia and the province's new recycling regulations that came into effect in December work that way too.

"Manufacturers of sharps and needles should be managing this program, put money into the program — not voluntarily, but based on a regulation to then pay for this program," Matheson said. "This is not a new ask, this is actually in five or six other provinces right now."

Bodnar said the PANS pail program is operated “very cost-effectively and that’s why producers continue to participate in it.”