In an international investigation tracking the presence of cocaine in refuse water in European cities the Flemish city of Antwerp tops the league table. Nowhere were higher levels of cocaine recorded in city refuse water. Levels up in Antwerp are twice those of cities like Brussels and Amsterdam that feature on spots three and four on the ranking.
The investigation was carried out by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addition. Scientists examined refuse water from 104 European cities in 21 different countries on the look-out for five illegal stimulants: cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, XTC and ketamine as well as for cannabis.
The research shows a new record presence of cocaine in European waste water. All six drugs were recorded in virtually all the cities examined.
“Samples of waste water can tell us a lot about the scale of drug issues and new health threats facing our society” says Alexis Goosdeel of the Monitoring Centre.