Island and federal law enforcement agencies will hold a prescription drug take-back event next week.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs will be accepted at the following locations: the Island County Sheriff’s Office, South Precinct, 5521 East Harbor Road, Freeland; the Coupeville Marshal’s Office, 4 N.E. Seventh Street, Coupeville; and the Oak Harbor Police Department, 860 S.E. Barrington Drive.

In cooperation with the Drug Enforcement Administration, law enforcement agencies across the country have worked for years to keep prescription drugs off the street with take-back events. Over 4.1 million pounds — more than 2,100 tons — of pills have been collected, according to a recent news release.

The initiative addresses a public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs, the news release said.

In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines — flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash — both pose potential safety and health hazards.