Protecting Water
We are focused on conserving water and making sure that all waste water is properly handled and treated.
To ensure extra protection of municipal water supplies and aquifers, the Nutley site has two separate sewer systems: one handles both process water (used in the labs) and sanitary water (used in sinks, kitchens, etc.) from the site while the other is strictly for storm water. We sample and test waste water with strict compliance to government treatment standards.
Waste water is first sent to the company's dedicated environmental control facility where it is carefully monitored. From there, the water is discharged to the Passaic Valley Sewer Commissioners wastewater treatment facility, one of the largest such plants in the country.
Our efforts are focused not just on the water we use but the water we save through conservation. Water usage at the Nutley site has declined significantly since 1996 due to a reduction of manufacturing combined with conservation efforts. Today about one million gallons a day are consumed at the site, less than half the water needed a decade ago. Should conditions develop, we also have in place a Drought Emergency Contingency Plan to further reduce water consumption in case of a regional water shortage.
Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PIE)
Pharmaceuticals were developed to treat or prevent human disease and their use may result in releases to the environment that cannot be completely prevented. We know that pharmaceuticals can enter the environment in a variety of ways: the manufacturing process, improper disposal of unused medicines, and from patients who take medicines that eventually pass through the human body. Patient use is universally recognized as the primary contributor.
With the ever increasing sensitivity of analytical methods, pharmaceutical active ingredients and their metabolites have been detected in the environment in very small concentrations by various researchers in many countries. They are present in rivers, lakes and streams, as well as in the water we use in our homes. The presence of these biologically active compounds has raised concern among some regarding their potential human health and environmental impact, about the potential effects associated with long-term exposure of aquatic organisms and humans, and uncertainty about the possible effects of mixtures of many pharmaceuticals simultaneously present in the environment in trace amounts.
As releases of pharmaceuticals into the environment cannot totally be avoided, it is necessary to assess their potential impact in a scientific and differentiated way.