By Chad Klassen

Needle buyback program hopes to clean up sharps around the city

Jun 27, 2018 | 3:25 PM

KAMLOOPS — A group of Kamloops residents have banded together to try and clean up the needles around the city.

Caroline King and Dennis Geisbrecht are teaming up to reduce the number of sharps that’s been exaggerated, they say, with the mobile consumption site that was introduced last year. They are paying a nickel for every dirty sharp that is dropped off at their location on Royal Avenue. 

“Anybody that wants to bring used sharps to us can bring them back in the same way they would take back pop bottles for a refund,” said Caroline King, who started the program. “We pay five cents for a used sharp. We have to be able to confirm the sharp is used.”

King has volunteered on the North Shore for many years and wanted to find a way to clean up the streets and also help the homeless. 

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“There’s a lot of sharps out there. There were 270,000 sharps landed out in 2017,” said King. “I’ve called varying agencies in the city, including councillors, and asked ‘can you qualify in any way what is coming back?’ I knew there was a lot still out there.”

King’s friend Dennis Geisbrecht is also invested in the program, which is being personally funded by the pair. Donations are also rolling in from the community, including some ASK Wellness employees.

“The process that’s going on now needs to change,” Geisbrecht said. “We haven’t made any inroads as far as the harm reduction for the rest of the community. Let’s get needles off the beaches, out of the parks, and taken care of the way they should be.”

City councillor Ray Dhaliwal has been on board from the beginning, from when the program was first discussed to when it launched last week, knowing something needs to be done.

“I think this is a fantastic initiative these two citizens for our city have taken upon themselves to implement,” said Dhaliwal. “It’s working already. The amount of needles, they’ve picked up 5,000 already. That keeps them off our streets. Keeps them out of our parks.”

The businesses along the Tranquille corridor are excited about the clean-up initiative. 

“I think it’s excellent, the difference it makes,” said general manager of Totem City Motors Ryan Borowsky. “I think it’ll be a lot safer, especially children and people in general walking in sandals. I think a lot of people are concerned about the needles around this area.”

King says the program has proven so far to be a great incentive for the homeless. 

“We’ve had as many as 450 needles by one girl that cleaned up her camp,” said King. “There are a lot of camps in this [Royal Avenue] area here along the river and Mac Park, for instance, where a lot of citizens have already been taking pictures of how badly littered those areas are.”