Used Needles Can Be Deposited at 17 Sites

Officials are urging anyone who uses needles or syringes or finds them on the ground to use the countywide needle collection program, after a boy was stuck by a used needle last week near the Santa Clara riverbed.

The Ventura County Solid Waste Management Department runs the collection program, which designates 17 medical facilities as collection sites. There, residents can pick up free disposal containers and turn in used needles.

The sites will accept needles in liquid detergent bottles or bleach bottles with screw-on lids but will not accept them if they are loose in coffee cans, milk jugs or soda bottles.

Improper disposal of needles can injure children, home health-care providers and sanitation workers, health officials say. The needles or syringes may be contaminated with hepatitis, HIV and other communicable infections, and anyone who has been stuck should contact a doctor immediately.

For more information or to find the nearest collection location, call 654-2889.