Pharmaceuticals in wastewater: Behavior, preferences, and willingness to pay for a disposal program

Journal of Environmental Management

Volumn 90, Issue 3, 2009, Pages 1476-1482

  Kotchen, Matthew ^a   Kallaos, James ^a   Wheeler, Kaleena ^a   Wong, Crispin ^a   Zahller, Margaret ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

Author keywords

Contingent valuation; Pharmaceutical disposal; Wastewater; Willingness to pay

Indexed keywords

COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS; RESOURCE VALUATION; WASTEWATER DISPOSAL; WASTEWATER TREATMENT;

CONTINGENT VALUATIONS; DISPOSAL PROGRAMS; ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS; HAZARDOUS WASTES; PHARMACEUTICAL COMPOUNDS; PHARMACEUTICAL DISPOSAL; SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA; TELEPHONE SURVEY; TREATED WASTEWATER; WILLINGNESS TO PAY;

DROPS;

DRUG; INDUSTRIAL WASTE; WASTE DISPOSAL; WASTE MANAGEMENT; WASTEWATER; WILLINGNESS TO PAY;

CALIFORNIA; NORTH AMERICA; UNITED STATES;

EID: 58049173183     PISSN: 03014797     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2008.10.002     Document Type: Article

References (38)

1. Aadland D., and Caplan A.J. Curbside recycling: waste resource or waste of resources?. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 25 4 (2006) 855-874
2. Appel S. Return Unwanted Medications (RUM): Background. Available from: (2007), National Return and Disposal of Unwanted Medicines Limited. Available from: (accessed 18.07.07)
3. BAPPG. Bay area pollution prevention group. Report on the San Francisco bay area's safe medicine disposal days. Available from: (2006). (accessed 20.04.07)
4. Boivin M. The cost of medication waste. Canadian Pharmaceutical Journal/Revue Pharmaceutique Canadienne 130 4 (1997) 32-39
5. Bound J.P., and Voulvoulis N. Household disposal of pharmaceuticals as a pathway for aquatic contamination in the United Kingdom. Environmental Health Perspectives 113 12 (2005) 1705-1711
6. Daughton C.G. Cradle-to-cradle stewardship of drugs for minimizing their environmental disposition while promoting human health. I. The rationale for and avenues toward a green pharmacy. Environmental Health Perspectives 111 5 (2003) 757-774
7. Daughton C.G. Cradle-to-cradle stewardship of drugs for minimizing their environmental disposition while promoting human health. II. Drug disposal, waste reduction, and future directions. Environmental Health Perspectives 111 5 (2003) 775-785
8. DHHS. Department of Health and Human Services. Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2004), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Available from: (accessed 18.07.07)
9. DHHS. Department of Health and Human Services. Results from the 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings (2006), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockville, MD. Available from: (accessed 07.07.07)
10. Fent K., Weston A.A., and Caminada D. Ecotoxicology of human pharmaceuticals. Aquatic Toxicology 76 2 (2006) 122-159
11. Gordon R. Innovative clean-water plan a hit: medicine disposal program elicits inquires from all over. The Mercury News (2007) (2007, February 20)
12. Gressitt S.E., and Kaye L.W. Proposal for a National unused drug disposal program. Maine Benzodiazepine Study Group. Available from: (2006). (accessed 11.06.07)
13. Halling-Sørensen B., Nors Nielsen S., Lanzky P.F., Ingerslev F., Holten Lutzhoft H.C., and Jørgensen S.E. Occurrence, fate and effects of pharmaceutical substances in the environment - a review. Chemosphere 36 2 (1998) 357-393
14. Hanemann W.M. Welfare evaluations in contingent valuation experiments with discrete responses. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 66 3 (1984) 332-341
15. Hanemann W.M. Welfare evaluations in contingent valuation experiments with discrete response data: reply. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 71 4 (1989) 1057-1061
16. Kuspis D.A., and Krenzelok E.P. What happens to expired medications? A survey of community medication disposal. Veterinary and Human Toxicology 38 1 (1996) 48-49
17. Kolpin D.W., Furlong E.T., Meyer M.T., Thurman E.M., Zaugg S.D., Barber L.B., and Buxton H.T. Pharmaceuticals, hormones, and other organic wastewater contaminants in U.S. streams, 1999-2000: a national reconnaissance. Environmental Science and Technology 36 6 (2002) 1202-1211
18. Kotchen M.J., and Moore M.R. Private provision of environmental public goods: household participation in green-electricity programs. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 23 (2007) 1-16
19. Krinsky I., and Robb A.L. On approximating the statistical properties of elasticities. The Review of Economics and Statistics 68 4 (1986) 715-719
20. List J.A. Young, selfish, and male: field evidence of social preferences. The Economic Journal 114 (2004) 121-149
21. Mitchell R.C., and Carson R.T. Using Surveys to Value Public Goods: the Contingent Valuation Method (1989), Resources for the Future, Washington DC
22. Morgan T.M. The economic impact of wasted prescription medication in an outpatient population of older adults. The Journal of Family Practice 50 9 (2001) 779-781
23. Murphy J.J., Allen P.G., Stevens T.H., and Weatherhead D. A meta-analysis of hypothetical bias in stated preference valuation. Environmental and Resource Economics 30 (2005) 313-325
24. NACWA. National Association of Clean Water Agencies. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment: a white paper on options for the wastewater treatment community. Available from: (2005). (accessed 07.07.07)
25. ODC. Office of Diversion Control. Questions and Answers (2007), U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency. Available from: (accessed 08.03.07)
26. ONDCP. Office of National Drug Control Policy. Proper disposal of prescription drugs. Available from: (2007). (accessed 21.04.07)
27. Park T., Loomis J.B., and Creel M. Confidence intervals for evaluating benefits estimates from dichotomous choice contingent valuation studies. Land Economics 67 1 (1991) 64-73
28. Roberts P.H., and Thomas K.V. The occurrence of selected pharmaceuticals in wastewater effluent and surface waters of the lower tyne catchment. Science of the Total Environment 356 1-3 (2006) 143-153
29. Rubinstein L. Operating Unwanted Medication Collections - a Legal and Safe Approach (2006), Northeast Recycling Council, Inc, Brattleboro, VT. Available from: (accessed 11.06.07)
30. Sacher F., Lange F.T., Brauch H.J., and Blankenhorn I. Pharmaceuticals in groundwaters: analytical methods and results of a monitoring program in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Journal of Chromatography 938 1-2 (2001) 199-210
31. Seehusen D.A., and Edwards J. Patient practices and beliefs concerning disposal of medications. Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine 19 6 (2006) 542-547
32. Snyder S.A., Westerhoff P., Yoon Y., and Sedlak D.L. Pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and endocrine disruptors in water: implications for the water industry. Environmental Engineering Science 20 5 (2003) 449-469
33. Stackelberg P.E., Furlong E.T., Meyer M.T., Zaugg S.D., Henderson A.K., and Reissman D.B. Persistence of pharmaceutical compounds and other organic wastewater contaminants in a conventional drinking-water-treatment plant. Science of the Total Environment 329 (2004) 99-113
34. Ternes T.A., Joss A., and Siegrist H. Scrutinizing pharmaceuticals and personal care products in wastewater treatment. Environmental Science and Technology 38 20 (2004) 392a-399a
35. WCRC. Washington Citizens for Resource Conservation. SoundStats Report (2006). Available from: (accessed 21.04.07)
36. Webb S.F., Ternes T., Gibert G., and Olejnicak K. Indirect human exposure to pharmaceuticals via drinking water. Toxicology Letters 142 (2003) 157-167
37. Webb S.F. A data based perspective on the environmental risk assessment of human pharmaceuticals III - indirect human exposure. In: Kümmerer K. (Ed). Pharmaceuticals in the Environment. Sources, Fate, Effects, and Risk (2004), Springer-Verlag, Berlin
38. Weigel S., Berger U., Jensen E., Kallenborn R., Thoresen H., and Hühnerfuss H. Determination of selected pharmaceuticals and caffeine in sewage and seawater from Tromsø/Norway with emphasis on ibuprofen and its metabolites. Chemosphere 56 6 (2004) 583-592