SEATTLE — A state lawmaker wants to make drug companies responsible for disposing of unused medicine that could end up in the environment or be abused by teens.

Rep. Dawn Morrell, D-Puyallup, says she’ll push legislation requiring pharmaceutical companies to set up and pay for a statewide drug disposal program.

“We feel it’s their responsibility,” said Morrell, who is a nurse. “We can’t have them in the environment and in the drug cabinets for our little kids.”

She has the support of a coalition of local governments, pharmacists, environmentalists and others who say it’s a safer alternative to flushing drugs down the toilet or drain.

A pilot program has collected 15,000 pounds of prescription and over-the-counter pills at participating Bartell Drugs and Group Health Cooperative clinics in six counties since 2006.

But with public funding ending, the coalition is seeking a permanent, statewide solution, and it’s looking to drug manufacturers.

“If you make a product, you should arrange for it to be safely taken back,” said David Stitzhal, a member of the Northwest Product Stewardship Council, which is part of the coalition Pharmaceuticals from Households: A Return Mechanism, or PH:ARM.