Australia saw a fall in illegal drug consumption in the past year. However, the downward trend was unrelated to high living cost pressures, raising concerns about the impact of illicit drugs on household budgets amid tough economic conditions.
The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) has released the latest wastewater analysis, which collected data from 58 wastewater plants across Australia, covering about 14 million people.
Overall, the report found that Australians consumed over 14 tonnes of methylamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and methylenedioxy​methamphetamine (MDMA) in the 12 months to August 2022.
While the figure represents a 10 percent drop compared to the previous year, the commission said it was likely due to drug busts, which limited the supply of several types of illegal substances….