WasteServ Malta is providing a new service for the disposal in a safe manner of drug related items which could prove to be a danger.

The company said that needles, syringes and other drug related items were being increasingly discarded in the environment and there were a number of hazards associated with handling these items.

To this end, special containers of various sizes are being distributed for free at the civic amenity sites in Mriehel and Maghtab. People who deposit these containers in the correct manner at the civic amenity sites will be given another free box to be used until the next visit. The syringes will then be deposited in the hazardous waste container to be further disposed of in a safe manner.

These civic amenity sites allow members of the public to drive through to separately dispose of different materials including electronic waste, used furniture items, garden waste, cardboard, mattresses, spent medicine and waste oils. Containers to receive the waste fractions which are normally deposited at the bring-in sites are also available at these facilities.

There has been an overwhelming positive response to these civic amenity sites, WasteServ said. The demand has been so great that WasteServ staff have had to step up the service in order to meet the demand. A third civic amenity site is set to open shortly in Hal-Far.

The sites are open to receive and assist the public from 7.30am to 5.30pm all week, including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, to provide a facility for the disposal of waste without the need to store and wait for collection.