Needle exchange programs found in major cities around the world have return rates as low as 40 per cent, leaving up to 60 per cent of the millions of distributed needles unaccounted for. One popular method of disposal for users is to drop them through the holes found in manhole covers.

Every day, utility workers in Vancouver and many other cities around the world must enter the dark, confined spaces of manholes that can contain as many as hundreds of used syringes. If the weather has been dry, these syringes are in cone-shaped piles directly below the manhole cover. More often, roadwash, hydrocarbons, commercial run-off and human waste mix to form a mucky liquid of up to a foot deep in which the syringes float.

Before beginning their assigned job, the utility workers must collect all of the used syringes and secure them in biohazard containers. In the process, if they are stuck by a used syringe, they are expected to go to the hospital within two hours to begin a serious regimen of medical treatment.

Occupational safety groups and health organizations list the odds of infection after exposure through needlestick injury as follows: 30 per cent for hepatitis B, 10 per cent for hepatitis C and .3 -.8 per cent for HIV.

As an alternative to having city crews deal with the syringes, professional cleaning companies will come to dispose of the remaining muck as biohazard at a cost of hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of dollars for each manhole.

But there is also a less expensive solution to the problem. MUG Solutions is an award winning company with products proven to keep manholes spotlessly clean. TELUS Communications conducted a successful field trial and had this to say, "Your product has exceeded all of our expectations. It has proven itself to be reliable and cost effective."

In some instances on the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, MUG Solutions products have been in place for over two years with those manholes never having to be cleaned again.

In 2008, MUG Solutions and company president Tina Thompson were recognized by the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, with the Best Canadian Entrepreneur and Best New Company of the Year awards, and MUG was also named a finalist for the Best New Product of the Year and Most Innovative Company of the Year. The Canadian Society of Safety Engineers honoured MUG Solutions with an Outstanding Achievement by a Safety Professional award.

"The product was invented to keep workers safe. The ancillary benefit our customers have come to recognize is the economics of not paying for professional cleaners as well as having their utility workers begin their job assignment immediately. It’s a win-win," says Thompson of her company’s accomplishments.