Meth the outlier as WA cannabis, cocaine use soars during pandemic

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Meth the outlier as WA cannabis, cocaine use soars during pandemic

By David Prestipino

The first snapshot of Australia's drug consumption since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic has shown cocaine and cannabis use at record levels in capital cities, while methamphetamine use plunged by almost half in Perth.

Wastewater analysis for the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission's drug monitoring program report, released on Thursday, showed New South Wales had the highest average cocaine use in the country, South Australia the highest average meth use, and Victoria the highest average heroin use.

The use of illicit substances rose in Perth during the pandemic – except for meth.

The use of illicit substances rose in Perth during the pandemic – except for meth.Credit: Shannon Morris

Alcohol consumption initially dropped after restrictions were imposed but increased rapidly once they eased, while nicotine use remained stable.

Methamphetamine use, which had risen since the program began in 2016, declined sharply in every capital city once the pandemic started, with the sharpest fall in Perth, where average use almost halved since the previous report in April, which could be attributed to the state's hard border stance.

However strict border closures and earlier restrictions on movement and gatherings did not stop increases in use of other illicit drugs in Perth.

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While alcohol intake in Perth was only slightly up, cannabis and cocaine use reached record highs since data was first captured in 2016.

Although cannabis prices were highly inflated in some areas, the market was otherwise unaffected by the pandemic.

"This is likely because almost all of the market is supplied from domestic sources and cultivation occurs nationally," the report said.

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Heroin use in Perth had dropped markedly in line with a national trend in capital cities, but MDMA intake increased about 20 per cent between April and June.

The report found price increases were not a reliable indicator of consumption, which had risen in some places in line with prices.

Government income support payments were cited as among the factors to be taken into account for the rise in drug use throughout the pandemic.

Although WA continued to be a relatively low consumer of cocaine in the Australian context, use after the initial lockdown in April had recovered to reach a historical high.

MDMA use across Australia declined almost everywhere from April, but increased again in WA and the two territories in June.

WA also had relatively low overall consumption levels of pharmaceuticals compared to the national
averages.

Two new psychoactive substances, methylone and mephedrone, were included in the report and, while limited information was available on the human metabolism and excretion of the drugs, the majority of methylone detections were recorded in WA.

The 11th report from June 2020 sampled only capital cities, with 20 sites across Australia covering approximately 48 per cent of the population.

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