Hobart tops the nation on drugs

HOBART records the highest average consumption of cannabis, ecstasy, oxycodone and fentanyl among Australian capital cities, according to a new report.

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission yesterday released the latest report on the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program.

Nationally, the report covers 54 per cent of the population or about 12.6 million people.

Fifty wastewater treatment plants across Australia participated in the December 2018 collection, which monitored the consumption of 13 substances.

The report says that the average drug consumption in regional areas was higher than in capital cities – except for cocaine, heroin and alcohol.

“Of the drugs measured with available dose data, alcohol and nicotine continue to be the most consumed drugs in Australia, with methylamphetamine remaining the most consumed illicit drug,” the report says.

The national collection showed consumption of other drugs measured by the program remained considerably lower.

Of the five sites monitored in Tasmania three were capital-city sites and two were regional sites.

In total, Tasmanians consume an estimated 127.1kg of methylamphetamine annually, 15.5kg of cocaine, 16.7kg of MDMA or ecstasy and 4.5kg of heroin, according to the report.

The report also found Tasmania placed second-highest on: the average capital city and regional consumption of nicotine; the average capital-city consumption of alcohol; and the on average regional consumption of cannabis.

Reports on the national program are published three times a year. The report is available on the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission website.