The Dartmouth Police Department is finding success in battling the opioid crisis by allowing residents to dispose of medication at its headquarters.

The department announced that it has collected 100 pounds of medication since January through its new medication disposal bin, located in the headquarters' lobby at 249 Russells Mills Road.

“It puts a dent in the fact that people aren’t going to have opioids lying around the house,” said Dartmouth Detective Kyle Costa, explaining that a common source of prescription opioids is medicine cabinets.

The disposal bin allows residents to get rid of their old and unused medications easily and securely, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“It’s as simple as putting a letter into the mailbox,” said Costa. “It runs itself. It’s a great success, and we are pleased to maintain it.”

According to Costa, the department began looking into installing the medication disposal bin in early 2016. Costa discovered a grant sponsored by CVS, and it was not long before the department was accepted and a box was shipped to the police station. After filing paperwork with the state's Department of Environmental Protection, the bin was ready to go.

“It didn’t take long at all,” Costa said. “We were up and running within a week of getting the box.”

After the disposal bin was installed and officially open for collection in January, the department began a social media campaign, posting to its official Facebook page letting residents know that the bin was available.

The disposal bin is typically emptied monthly and the drugs are inventoried and destroyed, but Costa said that it has become so successful that the department has had to empty it bi-weekly on several occasions.

For more information about the medicine disposal bin, visit the Dartmouth Police Facebook page.