Sauk Rapids, Waite Park Police Hosting DEA Drug Take Back Day Saturday

(KNSI) — The Sauk Rapids Police Department and ARXG are partnering to host the Drug Enforcement Administration’s 30th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day this Saturday.

From 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., residents can drop off unwanted, unused, or expired medications for free, safe, and anonymous disposal at the Sauk Rapids Government Center, 250 Summit Avenue North. Sharps disposal will also be available at the location.

Experts warn that unused medications sitting at home put others at risk, including accidental poisoning, overdose, and pills ending up in the wrong hands.

Since the DEA launched the program in 2010, more than 20 million pounds have been gathered. Last April, Minnesota residents alone turned in more than 10,000 pounds of unused and expired medications.

Locally, the Sauk Rapids Police Department has offered year-round safe disposal at the government center since October 2025 through two drop boxes for medications and sharps. Since then, residents have dropped off 726 pounds of medications and 426 pounds of sharps. ARXG, a Sauk Rapids-based company specializing in strategies that eliminate disposal by keeping materials in use through recycling, reuse, and repair, will cover the cost of destruction for both drop boxes.

Prescription and over-the-counter medications, pills, powders, and patches; syringes, needles, lancets, injectors, pens, razors, and other sharps; liquids in a sealed, original container; and empty inhalers are accepted under certain conditions.

Items such as aerosol cans, thermometers or devices, pill organizers, lotions and creams, batteries, radioactive waste, hydrogen peroxide, or illegal drugs are not.

Before dropping anything off, any labels must be completely removed.

The year-round drop boxes at the Government Center are available Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., for residents who can’t make Saturday’s event.

The Waite Park Police Department is also hosting a Drug Take Back Day event at its Public Works Facility, 670 17th Avenue South. It runs from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Residents looking for year-round disposal options can click here to find a free locator for medication disposal sites across Minnesota at pharmacies, clinics, and grocery stores.

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