2007 U.P. PHARMACEUTICAL CLEAN SWEEP  When: 9 a.m. to noon. Saturday April 21 (Earth Day)  Items to be accepted: Unused and outdated prescriptions and medications  Location: Across the Upper Peninsula at a church parking lot near you. Collection sites will be announced in April. This effort is being sponsored by leaders of the Roman Catholic, Lutheran, United Methodist, Buddhist, Baha'i, Jewish, Unitarian Universalist, Presbyterian, and Episcopal communities of Northern Michigan in cooperation with the Superior Watershed Partnership and the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.  For more information call the Superior Watershed Partnership at 906-228-6095.    Earth Keepers: Pharmaceuticals In Our WatersWith the help of the Superior Watershed Partnership residents of the Upper Peninsula are poised to break yet another national record. It all started on a Saturday morning in April 2005 when people from across the UP turned in over 45 tons of household hazardous waste in just three hours! Then on Earth Day 2006 they broke another record by bringing in over 320 tons of electronic waste. Again, in just three hours. That equals about 3,500 pounds of obsolete electronics turned in per minute! These events insure that any toxic materials are properly disposed of to help protect our groundwater, our rivers, our drinking water and our Great Lakes. Now, with Earth Day 2007 fast approaching the people of the Upper Peninsula are getting ready to address yet another emerging environmental issue. On Saturday April 21st at sites in all fifteen UP counties, the Superior Watershed Partnership will be coordinating a pharmaceutical collection of unwanted and expired prescription and over-the-counter medications. Why? Because recent national studies have documented that over 80% of the rivers sampled tested positive for a range of pharmaceuticals including antibiotics, birth control hormones, antidepressants, veterinary drugs and other medications. Some urban centers have even detected traces of pharmaceuticals in their tap water. Pharmaceuticals in some rivers have also been linked to behavioral and sexual mutations in species of fish, amphibians and birds. Pharmaceutical compounds known as endocrine disruptors have even been linked to neurological problems in children and increased incidence of some cancers.Is there some good news? Yes, once again the Upper Peninsula is ahead of the national curve when it comes to preventing pollution and protecting water quality. The upcoming Earth Day event will be the largest one-day pharmaceutical collection of its kind in the country. How can this be? In two words; Earth Keepers. For three years now the Superior Watershed Partnership has worked closely with the Cedar Tree Institute and over 135 Earth Keeper congregations to assure an incredible public turnout for these free pollution prevention events. Through Earth Keepers the Superior Watershed Partnership has been able to effectively educate the public about a wide range of environmental issues. For instance, people are learning that it is not acceptable to dump unwanted medications down the toilet or down the drain. But Earth Keepers is far more than just spring collection events. The Watershed Partnership also has on-going programs that include; Adopt-Your-Watershed, public environmental education, summer youth programs, land conservation, habitat restoration, energy conservation and numerous opportunities for volunteers to get hands-on experience in their communities, national parks, national forests or the watershed they live in.We need your help! Obviously the Earth Keeper Pharmaceutical Collection has numerous community benefits besides protecting water quality so communities are being asked to pitch in and help. The following Upper Peninsula communities will have at least one Earth Keeper collection site; Marquette, Munising, Escanaba, Gladstone, Houghton, Iron Mountain, Newberry, St. Ignace, Sault St. Marie, Menominee, Manistique, Lanse, Crystal Falls, Ironwood and White Pine. Local municipalities (cities, counties, townships) are being asked to help finance this important community service. Local police and sheriff departments are being asked to provide one law enforcement official for each collection site. Pharmacists are being asked to volunteer their expertise at a collection site in their community. Local corporations, businesses and individuals are being asked for their financial or technical support. Many communities have already provided police officers, pharmacists, funding and numerous Earth Keeper volunteers. Don’t be the last community to get on board!For more information on how you can help support the April Pharmaceutical Collection or other watershed protection projects please contact the Superior Watershed Partnership at 906-228-6095.For a complete list of participating communities and Earth Keeper collection sites please visit; www.superiorwatersheds.org and click on Earth Keepers. It takes many partners to coordinate a 15-county event such as this. Thanks to the Mining Journal, Senator Levin’s Office, the Environmental Protection Agency, Thrivent Financial, the UP Sheriffs Association, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, the NMU Environmental Science Program and the thousands of Earth Keepers from across the Upper Peninsula.Editor's Note:  This is the third in a series of articles by the Rev. Jon Magnuson and Carl Lindquist on the topic of the Earth Keeper Covenant Initiative, a multi-denominational commitment to protecting and preserving the environment and landscape of the Upper Peninsula. Less