Pot- use study to analyze sewage

The federal government is chipping in money for a three- year pilot study using sewage samples to determine levels of marijuana use in two Washington cities — research that could help answer some key questions about pot legalization, the University of Puget Sound announced.

The National Institutes of Health has agreed to pay $ 120,000 so that Dan Burgard, an associate chemistry professor, can conduct the study, which will look at how per- capita pot use changed after Washington’s first legal pot shops opened in July.

The research involves analyzing wastewater samples for levels of metabolites produced when the body processes drugs.