Cocaine contamination in marine life: Shocking discovery off Brazil coast

Scientists have made a shocking discovery. Off the coast of Brazil, a significant presence of sharks under the influence of cocaine has been detected. This is due to drugs leaking into ocean waters. The problem of water pollution with cocaine is not limited to regions leading to drug exportation.

As reported by the BBC, marine biologists studied 13 sharks in Brazilian waters. In the bodies of each of them, high concentrations of cocaine were detected in the liver and muscles.

The problem of water pollution affects more than the world's leading regions in the production and export of drugs. Europe has some of the most cocaine-contaminated waterways in the world, with Antwerp (Belgium) at the top of the list.

Based on sewage samples, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) has created an interactive map showing the extent of drug-contaminated waterways. The data includes 108 cities.

The problem of cocaine-contaminated waterways: Antwerp leads

In Antwerp, which ranks first, 1,721 mg of cocaine per 1,000 people can be detected. Second in line is Spanish Tarragona, whose rate was 1,463 mg per 1,000 people.

Reykjavik in Iceland also recorded surprisingly high levels of cocaine contamination, with the city of 123,000 residents pumping 638 mg of cocaine per 1,000 people into the sewage.

The level of cocaine in city sewage poses a severe problem for wildlife. During storms or due to poor sewer performance, untreated wastewater can reach waterways around large cities, carrying large amounts of cocaine.

Like all chemical pollutants, these substances enter the food chain and accumulate in animals, causing dramatic health consequences for them.