PONTIAC - The city of Pontiac is at the forefront of making drinking water safer. Pontiac Township High School science teacher Paul Ritter has begun programs to educate both his students and the public about the importance of keeping drugs and chemicals out of the water.

In January, Ritter began the Pontiac Prescription Drug Disposal Program. As part of the effort, local Kmart, Walgreens and Sartoris Super Drugs pharmacies will accept unused or expired medications for proper disposal. The goal is to keep the unneeded drugs out of the drinking supply.

In the first two months, 80 pounds of drugs have been collected.

Organizers hope to take the project nationwide, and that's getting closer to reality. Ritter has been contacted by state water agencies and even the Florida Environmental Protection Agency.

"We just met with (one water agency), and the gentleman looked point blank at (Ritter) and I and said, 'I wish I had you guys as teachers,'" said PTHS teacher Eric Bohm, who recently began helping Ritter. "That just made my month."

The project started after Ritter's wife asked him about how she should dispose of some expired drugs. He wasn't certain, so he created a class project for his ecology students. When the research was completed, Ritter and students gave a presentation to city officials and pharmaceutical representatives about what happens to drugs like anti-depressants, birth control pills and pain killers if they are disposed of incorrectly.

The results could be harmful to be people, wildlife and the environment, the group said, and presentation outlined studies linking contaminated water to animal mutations and other harmful environmental reactions.

Bohm, an Illinois Studies teacher, joined the effort in February. His students have begun grassroots lobbying, writing letters about the issue to Illinois' 118 representatives and 59 senators, as well as state committees and federal officials.

The letters included information on Pontiac's efforts as well as educational information on the effects of improper drug disposal. Bohm said his students are making a difference.

"They are learning that this is life and this is how things get done," Bohm said.

"They can do the research and feel ownership with what they are doing."

And the drug disposal program has already expanded to include 12 Doc's Drugs in suburban Will County and a Michigan retailer. The Pontiac Walgreens is also part of a pilot to determine if the retailer can expand the program statewide, and reach close to 400 locations.

"I'm more than pleased with the response that we have had so far," Ritter said.

"Who would have expected a community of around 12,000 to get this type of response?"

For more information, visit www.p2d2program.org.