Dispose of needles and sharps safely

It is important to dispose of needles and sharps safely to prevent the risk of injury to people in the community.

What are community sharps?

Many people rely on the use of needles and syringes to maintain their own health, or the health of a family member. Injecting equipment is also used by injecting drug users, and for animal healthcare by pet and livestock owners.

'Community sharps' is the name used to describe needles, syringes, lancets and similar equipment resulting from these activities.

Disposal of community sharps

Community sharps should always be kept secure and separate from other wastes.

Because of the high risk of injury to workers and other community members they should never be disposed of:

  • in household waste or recycling bins (plastic syringes are NOT recyclable)
  • in public litter bins
  • by flushing down toilets or drains
  • by discarding into the environment.

If you inject at home

You should:

  • Use a sharps container or other appropriate puncture resistant container (not glass)
  • Store container out of reach of children
  • Seal lid of container when three quarters full, then dispose of container at one of the community sharps disposal locations listed below.

If you inject away from home

You should:

  • Place your injecting equipment in a community sharps bin in a public toilet or other place that has a community sharps disposal bin, or
  • Place your injecting equipment in a sharps container or other appropriate puncture resistant container and dispose of the container at one of the community sharps disposal locations listed below.

If you find injecting equipment

While the risk of acquiring a serious infection as a result of an accidental injury from a community sharp is extremely low, the anxiety resulting from such an injury can be significant.

If you find a syringe in a public place, help protect your community by calling the:

Needle Clean Up Hotline 1800 633 353

Alternatively, you can contact us on 02 4645 4000.

Where can I take community sharps for disposal?

Community sharps disposal facilities are available at:

Bradbury Village Pharmacy
Bradbury Shopping Centre
The Parkway, Bradbury		 Brownhills Pharmacy
157A Queen Street,
Campbelltown
Claymore Pharmacy
Claymore Shopping Centre
Dobell Road, Claymore		 Glenfield Pharmacy
118 Railway Parade,
Glenfield
Priceline Pharmacy
Ingleburn Village
Macquarie Road, Ingleburn		 Rosemeadow Pharmacy
Rosemeadow Market Place
Copperfield Drive, Rosemeadow
Minto Mall Pharmacy
Shop 2/48 Ben Lomond Road,
Minto		 Priceline Pharmacy
Macarthur Square
Gilchrist Dr, Campbelltown
St Andrews Pharmacy
St Andrews Shopping Centre
Ballantrae Drive, St Andrews		 Simply Pharmacy
Ingleburn Town Centre
Nardoo Street, Ingleburn
Terry White Chemmart
8/5 Willowdale Drive,
Denham Court		  Pharmacy on Queen
1/34 Queen Street,
Campbelltown

Related Information

Needle Clean Up Hotline

1800 633 353

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