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These are the European cities that use the most drugs (based on their toilet water)

The research observed a spike in drug use over the weekend.

cocaine A map charting the relative use of cocaine across 50 European cities. emcdda emcdda

A EUROPE-WIDE research programme that measures drug use based on the analysis of wastewater has thrown up some interesting discoveries.

The analysis was carried out on wastewater from 50 cities each over the course of March of this year.

The cities ranged from as northwestern as Reykjavik in Iceland to as southeastern as Nicosia in Cyprus. No Irish cities were monitored as part of the study.

It found a wide variance in the different types of drugs being used in different parts of Europe and observed the dramatic spike in the use of some drugs that occurs at the weekend.

EMCDDA / YouTube

The wastewater analysis was carried out the main EU drugs agency and revealed a number of interesting trends:

  • Cocaine use was highest in western and southern cities with Antwerp recording the highest usage ahead of London and then Zurich.
  • The use of MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, has increased since 2011 with several cities recording sharp increases over the last five years. Eindhoven recorded the highest MDMA usage, significantly ahead of  Antwerp in second place.
  • The use of amphetamine, commonly known as speed, was concentrated in northern European countries. Antwerp again saw the greatest concentration of the drug ahead of Duelmen (Germany), Dortmund and Reykjavik.
  • The use of Methamphetamine, commonly known as crystal meth, was generally low across Europe. Traditionally concentrated in the Czech Republic it now appears to be present in parts of eastern Germany.

PastedImage-70364 The top 15 of the 50 cities studied for their use of MDMA. emcdda emcdda

Weekend

The study was conducted over the course of March 2016 and also monitored the average daily drug use over each of the seven days of the week. The results found that the use of cocaine and MDMA rose sharply at weekends in most cities, while methamphetamine use was more evenly distributed throughout the week.

Below is the daily trend of the five cities that had the greatest concentration of cocaine or cocaine metabolites in the sewer system.

The cities are Antwerp in green, Zurich in black, Barcelona in blue, London in orange, and Monlina de Sugara (Spain) in turquoise.

PastedImage-99665 emcdda emcdda

Read: Gardaí seize MDMA and heroin worth €1.1m in Dublin >

Read: ‘People die in toilets, people die in urine-soaked stairwells’ >

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24 Comments
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    Mute Mick Mccabe
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:04 PM

    leglaise it tax it and control it and watch the country better it’s self from the extra revenue from it look at the likes of America and put 1 step forward not 10 steps back as normal

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    Mute darren
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:07 PM

    @Mick Mccabe: “look at the likes of America” with rose tinted glasses?

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    Mute Gillian Scully
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:12 PM

    @Mick Mccabe: Good idea and use the money to match the plant pots in Grafton Street that are in north Dublin.

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    Mute Honeybadger197
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:04 PM

    @Mick Mccabe: Amen.

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    Mute GerryCummins
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:09 PM

    @Mick Mccabe: is that not just for medicinal use in the US?

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    Mute Honeybadger197
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:18 PM

    @GerryCummins: “The non-medical use of cannabis is legal in 9 states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington) plus the District of Columbia, and decriminalized in another 13 states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands.”

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    Mute Bobby Phelan
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:20 PM

    @Mick Mccabe: if they legalized big pharma industry would collapse that is what it is all about money..

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    Mute Jonathan Whelan
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:09 PM

    Ive never seen a stoner attack anything at 3 am other than a burger, yet perfectly legal to down a gut full of vodka n redbull and strut out the club like your connor mcgregor looking for trouble! Some logic

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    Mute GerryCummins
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:10 PM

    @Jonathan Whelan: seen plenty that couldnt string a sentence together though….you know wharra mean man..yeah man…

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    Mute Jonathan Whelan
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:30 PM

    @GerryCummins: true enough, but they aint the ones clogging up A&E’s and urinating n vomiting after clubs in a town near you!

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    Mute Todd Hebert
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:09 PM

    Once again, Gardaí resources being wasted on combatting something that should be legal, regulated, and taxed.

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    Mute Del Haven
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    Jan 25th 2018, 4:29 AM

    @Todd Hebert: also, were it legal these growhouses wouldn’t exist

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    Mute Joseph Caulfield
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    Jan 25th 2018, 3:02 PM

    @Todd Hebert:
    The Gardai did the right thing to shut down this criminal enterprise run id imagine not by cheech and chong but by gangs. It should of course be legalised so Gardai can target heroin and coke dealers but the political will isnt there. The yanks got it made illegal originally and ironically they are now the ones legalising it.

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    Mute Paul Mc Manus
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:00 PM

    Legalise the stuff for God’s sake.

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    Mute Brendan McLaughlin
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:03 PM

    Legalise it; refine it, tax it and build hospitals; schools and homes.

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    Mute Jimmy Reinhardt
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:00 PM

    Junkies? It’s weed for crying out loud, should be legalized…

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    Mute Brian Begley
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:01 PM

    2.7 million……stop

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    Mute Kate Flaherty
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:14 PM

    I can smell it from here!, anyone out there with menopausal symptoms I would recommend giving it a go!….

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    Mute Ania_on_coffee
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:37 PM

    I think cannabis should be legal for many medical conditions. The therapeutic window (dose of a drug between a medical effect and a toxic effect) of cannabis is very narrow, that’s why it is used with caution. Any therapeutic drugs – natural or synthetic need to be used with wisdom, not recreation, because all drugs have side effects.

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    Mute Honeybadger197
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:06 PM

    @Ania_on_coffee: I take your point, but you must understand cannabis is lovely.

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    Mute Ania_on_coffee
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:17 PM

    @Honeybadger197: We should legalize it to everyone because it’s lovely? LOL I’m sure it’s probably lovely yes

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    Mute Honeybadger197
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:22 PM

    @Ania_on_coffee: An occasional bowl is a beautiful thing.

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    Mute Luke
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    Jan 24th 2018, 8:35 PM

    @Honeybadger197:

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    Mute Ania_on_coffee
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    Jan 24th 2018, 10:05 PM

    @Fake Avast: It’s illegal in Ukraine. But some people grow it in the countryside in their backgardens. As for Russia – i don’the know.

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    Mute john doe
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    Jan 25th 2018, 12:08 AM

    @ Ania
    I think you are not correct. The difference between medical and toxic effect in cannabis is very wide.
    Cannabis does not have a toxic effect on the body unless the dose is huge, More than you could physically take!

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    Mute Adam Reid
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:55 PM

    Excellent news.

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    Mute billy Dorney
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    Jan 24th 2018, 7:50 PM

    Great

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    Mute Niccolo Saccho
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    Jan 24th 2018, 11:53 PM

    Can you imagine if the country was run by stoners?
    Nothing would ever get done.

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    Mute john doe
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    Jan 25th 2018, 12:14 AM

    @nichalo
    Yeah man that richard branson and steve jobs never got anything done right

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    Mute Nollaig Elliot
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    Jan 25th 2018, 12:48 AM

    @Niccolo Saccho:

    I disagree. Although it’s an individual thing I guess. I tend to use pot mostly whilst doing activities. Not driving of course.

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    Mute Termaz Fx
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    Jan 25th 2018, 9:23 AM

    @Niccolo Saccho: totally agree. No rapes, no senseless domestic violence, no pissing puking on the streets.
    What horror it would be to live in a country where no such thing would be done!

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