Drugs dumped in Lae city beach

By PETER KORUGL
A large amount of prescription drugs have been dumped over the weekend at the Voco Point, a popular recreational area for Lae city residents.
The drugs, which are past their use-by dates, are for the treatment of stomach ulcer, diabetes, flu, asthma and many other ailments.
“These are prescription drugs, meaning they are very strong drugs. You can’t get them over the counter in any shops here,” Dr Peter Olali, the medical registrar of the Angau Memorial Hospital, said.
Dr Olali, who was alarmed by the discovery, said the expired drugs were dangerous to people and the environment.
He said children swimming in the area would have been exposed to them.
Some unscrupulous people could also have gathered the drugs and sold them to unsuspecting people, he said.
Dr Olali believed the drugs were dumped there by a private clinic or a pharmacy.
A community leader said such items should be properly disposed of and not simply dumped anywhere.
“There must also be special disposal systems for clinics, health centres, pharmacies and hospitals,” Kau Kasup said.
Early this month, the Department of Environment and Conservation revealed that chemical and dangerous wastes had accumulated in PNG because there was no proper disposal system.
It said the chemicals and waste from various industries were often kept in improper storages and simply discharged into the environment.