Syringe track and trace program being explored in Eureka

EUREKA – Discarded syringes are piling up in Eureka and the community continues to seek ways to address it.
This video from PacOut Green Team’s clean up has been viewed more than 11,000 times. The group had to use make-shift sharps containers to collect hundreds of needles from Cooper Gulch.
City Councilmember Kim Bergel points to AB 109, and Propositions 47 and 57 as making the problem worse. She said that people are no longer deterred from using because use and possession are now misdemeanor offenses.
Bergel said needle exchange is a part of the solution because it helps prevent the spread of infectious diseases She is also exploring a city ordinance to require anyone providing such a service to use a syringe track and trace program.
She said this would increase accountability and help city officials make more informed decisions.
Kim Bergel said, “By providing accountability it kind of supports what folks are saying about what their programs are doing, what their programs are not doing so that we can see well maybe if there’s 13 more red needles than purple needles we can identify which party and what we can do to do better.”

-Paid Advertisement-