Burlington, WI Public Health Rules: Syringe Disposal (2026)

Section 265-5 defines household sharp medical waste broadly as any product capable of puncturing or lacerating the skin that is designed or used to treat, diagnose or prevent a disease or medical condition, expressly including scalpels and hypodermic needles, and the section bars depositing it anywhere in the City except as the ordinance provides. The only acceptable disposal method is dropping the waste off at the City of Burlington Fire Department, during hours the Department sets, using the containers the Department supplies, and in the manner the Fire Chief prescribes.

Two mixing prohibitions reinforce that single channel: household sharp medical waste cannot be deposited with household or commercial garbage, and no sharps container or loose sharps waste may be mixed with recyclables. There is no needle-exchange or harm-reduction siting rule anywhere in this section; Chapter 265 addresses only how a resident gets rid of their own used sharps, not where any program facility may operate. Because the ordinance names the Fire Department as the sole depot, Burlington residents cannot rely on pharmacy take-back kiosks or the household hazardous waste stream addressed elsewhere in Chapter 265 for sharps specifically; the Fire Chief's posted hours and container specifications control. The section was added in 1992 by Ordinance No. 1398(9) and its penalty clause was amended in 2008 by Ordinance No. 1868(10).