The closure of nightclubs and bars during the lockdown to curb the spread of the new coronavirus in Europe is likely due to a significant reduction in MDMA drug use commonly consumed at parties last year, but the use of other substances such as cocaine and cannabis continued. to increase, according to an EU study published today.
The study, conducted by the Lisbon-based European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), looked at the effluents of nearly 45 million people in 75 European cities, revealing that the use of most drugs, except ), increased last year.
About half of the cities surveyed, from Barcelona to Oslo, recorded increases in cocaine, amphetamine, cannabis and methamphetamine residues found in wastewater.
“The results show both an increase and a spread for most of the substances studied, reflecting a problem of drug use that is both pervasive and complex,” said EMCDDA Director Alexis Gusdil.
A 2021 report from the United Nations showed a large increase in drug users worldwide due to the pandemic. The report stressed that many turned to drugs because of poverty, unemployment and inequality.
MDMA was the only drug whose residues were reduced in most of the cities studied, possibly due to the closure of nightclubs due to the pandemic where this psychoactive substance is frequently consumed, the EMCDDA reported.
According to the study, the distribution of drug use in European cities is more uniform compared to previous years, when more different geographical patterns were recorded.
Cocaine, for example, remains more important in cities in western and southern Europe, but is increasingly found in eastern Europe. Methamphetamine, historically concentrated in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, is now found in cities across the continent.
The study found that cannabis use appeared to be less affected by lockdowns for COVID-19 than other drugs. In a report last year, the EMCDDA said cannabis users were stockpiling through the dark network to avoid shortages during lockdowns.
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