Pubdate: Sat, 25 Jul 2015
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2015 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Jillian Kestler-D'Amours
Page: A7

COCAINE, OTHER DRUGS FOUND IN ONTARIO WATER

McGill study found traces of substances in drinking water that could
harm environment

Trace amounts of cocaine, oxycodone and morphine, among other illicit
and prescription drugs, have been detected in surface water in
southern Ontario rivers, a new study says.

The drugs originate in wastewater discharged into the Grand River
watershed, according to aMcGill University report published last week
in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Limited
quantities of certain drugs also remained in Ontario's drinking water,
even after passing through a drinking water treatment plant,
researchers said.

"If the wastewater treatment plant, which is kind of an intense
treatment that we do to remove these contaminants, is not able to
remove fully the compound, we shouldn't expect the environment to
remove it fully," said Viviane Yargeau, a chemical engineering
professor at McGill and one of the study's authors.

A total of 17 substances were observed in small quantities in the
wastewater, including cocaine, amphetamines, opioid drugs and
metabolites. Researchers said cocaine, ephedrine and prescription
opioids were also not effectively removed at the drinking water
treatment plant.

Yargeau told the Star that while the drugs do not pose a serious
health risk to humans, they could have a negative impact on the
environment.

"I do drink tap water even though I've measured these concentrations
in tap water," she said. "It's a bit more of a concern that we
discharge them in the river knowing that the river might accumulate
some of these drugs, that the fish will be exposed."

The study did not measure the drugs' impact on the
ecosystem.

Yargeau said that based on previous studies that detailed the effects
of pharmaceuticals on aquatic life, however, the drugs could
potentially alter fish behaviour and even threaten some species' survival.

"We can assume that the fish might have a different behaviour when
exposed to the drug, and maybe that would have a decline on the
survival rate of a fish population," she said.
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