Inside STAT: How contaminants from prescription-drug plants pollute waterways

TREATED WASTE FLOWS FROM THE MORGANTOWN, W.VA., WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT INTO THE MONONGAHELA RIVER. THE PLANT RECEIVES EFFLUENT FROM A MYLAN PHARMACEUTICAL FACTORY.(JEFF SWENSEN FOR STAT) 

Ordinary folk have long been blamed for drug pollution in local waterways, either through bodily waste or flushing unused medications. But a new investigation from STAT and Type Investigations finds that drug companies are much bigger polluters, dumping substantial quantities of product from manufacturing facilities into local rivers and streams. A U.S. Geological Survey analysis found levels of an anti-seizure medication at 90 times the amount considered safe for wildlife downstream from a West Virginia treatment plant that receives wastewater from a Mylan factory. Other companies, including Pfizer and generics maker Teva, were also found to have their product in wastewater that were several levels higher than the wildlife-safety standard. STAT contributor Natasha Gilbert has more here.