A syringe was found in a grassy area of Spring Valley Apartments in Murfreesboro. The person who found the needle called police to notify them about the situation. Spring Valley Apartments have a total of 176 units and the complex is filled with a majority of single parent households with children who utilize the greens to play in.
Data from the Coalition for Safe Community Needle Disposal indicates that 13.5 million people in the U.S. are discarding 7.8 billion used needles outside the traditional healthcare setting. Many of those who use needles are using them to manage their own healthcare as opposed to illegal drug use. Illegal drug users are responsible for an estimated 1.5 million needles annually, according to SafeNeedleDisposal.org.
In Murfreesboro, used syringes can be deposited at the TN Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event that will be held on November 2, 2019. The collection site is the Murfreesboro Solid Waste Department at 4765 Florence Road and will be from 8AM to 12 noon. Syringes must be in a puncture proof container when dropped off.