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Italian river 'full of cocaine'

 
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Behemoth



Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 19023
Location: Leeds
PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 9:46 am    Post subject: Italian river 'full of cocaine' Reply with quote
    

From BBC news - all we have is fish and shopping trolleys!

Italian river 'full of cocaine'

Scientists have found large quantities of cocaine residue in a river in northern Italy - suggesting consumption is much higher than previously thought. They say they found the equivalent of 40,000 doses a day in the Po valley, home to about five million people.

The study, published by the UK's Environmental Health magazine, tests sewage and rivers for levels of a by-product of cocaine metabolism. The team say the test has to be refined before being applied on a vast scale. The chemical found in the urine of cocaine users is called benzoylecgonine, or BE. It is produced only by metabolising cocaine.

'Staggering'

The new report suggests that past studies of cocaine use in Italy - mainly based on population surveys and crime statistics - had been optimistic. According to official estimates, people living around the Po consume about 15,000 doses of cocaine a month. But the research claims more than three times as much cocaine is used in the area.

The team, led by Dr Ettore Zuccato from the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research in Milan, said they were taken aback by their findings, whose economic impact they described as "staggering".

"The large amount of cocaine (at least 1,500 kg/3,307lb) that our findings suggest are consumed per year in the River Po basin would amount... to about $150m (£84m) in street value," the scientists wrote in the journal.

They hope that in the near future, they will be able to develop similar tests in order to assess the true number of cannabis and heroin users.

Lozzie



Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 2595

PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 9:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Heroin is, by all accounts, a dreadful problem in Northern Italy, too

Many people blame it on the casual way in which Italians typically inject themselves with all sorts of over-the-counter drugs - it is a national medical characteristic - just as the British favour medecines in syrup form, the Americans love their pills, and the French favour suppositories Hypodermic needles and syringes can be easily purchased in Italian pharmacies for use in the home!

Guest






PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 10:09 am    Post subject: Re: Italian river 'full of cocaine' Reply with quote
    

Behemoth wrote:
From BBC news - all we have is fish and shopping trolleys!

Italian river 'full of cocaine'

Scientists have found large quantities of cocaine residue in a river in northern Italy - suggesting consumption is much higher than previously thought. They say they found the equivalent of 40,000 doses a day in the Po valley, home to about five million people.

The study, published by the UK's Environmental Health magazine, tests sewage and rivers for levels of a by-product of cocaine metabolism. The team say the test has to be refined before being applied on a vast scale. The chemical found in the urine of cocaine users is called benzoylecgonine, or BE. It is produced only by metabolising cocaine.

'Staggering'

The new report suggests that past studies of cocaine use in Italy - mainly based on population surveys and crime statistics - had been optimistic. According to official estimates, people living around the Po consume about 15,000 doses of cocaine a month. But the research claims more than three times as much cocaine is used in the area.

The team, led by Dr Ettore Zuccato from the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research in Milan, said they were taken aback by their findings, whose economic impact they described as "staggering".

"The large amount of cocaine (at least 1,500 kg/3,307lb) that our findings suggest are consumed per year in the River Po basin would amount... to about $150m (£84m) in street value," the scientists wrote in the journal.

They hope that in the near future, they will be able to develop similar tests in order to assess the true number of cannabis and heroin users.


Does this mean all the fish are dieing, but they just don't care!

monkey1973



Joined: 17 Jan 2005
Posts: 683
Location: Bonnie scotland
PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 10:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Makes you wonder what else is in the water

dpack



Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 45377
Location: yes
PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 7:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

so what sort of fly do i need for the trout?

dpack



Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 45377
Location: yes
PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 7:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

to be very serious there are things in the water we do not need radionucleatides pcb's dioxins metals organics that is without taking into account of the biological oxygen demand from partially processed domestic sewage check your local watercourse you may find dinner or you may find some thing needs doing the environment agency have teeth so does the local press

RoryD



Joined: 02 Jun 2005
Posts: 692
Location: West Yorkshire
PostPosted: Fri Aug 05, 05 8:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Thats amazing. I have a vision of a river delta like deposit at the mouth of the river......

Behemoth



Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 19023
Location: Leeds
PostPosted: Mon Aug 08, 05 8:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

dpack wrote:
to be very serious there are things in the water we do not need radionucleatides pcb's dioxins metals organics that is without taking into account of the biological oxygen demand from partially processed domestic sewage check your local watercourse you may find dinner or you may find some thing needs doing the environment agency have teeth so does the local press


Very true, while most inland discharges are now treated small works and rural areas sometimes only have partial treatment. Also there are all sorts of 'overflow' pipes into rivers from all sorts of premises. If you see something dodgy report it. the water industry is trying to cut down on the number of pollution incidents, often these are from sewer overflows which malfunction due to blockages (shopping trolleys, traffic cones etc ) and are not continuously monitored.

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