Discarded drugs, medicines converted into electricity

YORK, PA.

Police departments in a south-central Pennsylvania county say they collected 5.51 tons of drugs and medicine last year that was converted into electricity.

WHTM-TV reports York County police departments collect the unwanted drugs through their drug take-back boxes. Officers then take the drugs to the York County Solid Waste and Refuse Authority.

The authority burns garbage to heat boilers that produce steam. The steam then turns turbines and powers a generator that produces electricity. Authority spokeswoman Ellen O'Connor says they are producing enough energy daily to power the city of York.

Associated Press