Meth and cocaine use rising, wastewater tests show

Otago Daily Times

25-07-2025

Methamphetamine use in Westport has doubled in 12 months according to wastewater testing. Photo: NZ Herald
Methamphetamine use in Westport has doubled in 12 months and Hokitika cocaine use is rising, according to wastewater test figures by the National Drug Intelligence Bureau.
The figures from the Drugs in Wastewater Programme from May 2024 to April 2025 are measured as mg per day per 1000 people.
Average Westport methamphetamine (meth) use results clocked in at 1181mg a day — compared to the national average of 1165mg.
The Greymouth wastewater samples showed the average daily meth use to be about 349mg a day, while the average Hokitika results were 357mg — with a spike of 1132mg a day in November.
Hokitika figured highly for cocaine use at 24.5mg a day, followed by Greymouth (20.6mg) and then Westport (8mg).
The national average for cocaine use is about 163mg a day.
The presence of MDMA was stable with use in Westport averaging 190mg a day, Greymouth 128mg and Hokitika 129mg. The national MDMA average use was 263mg.
Westport meth levels spiked in October-November at about 1900mg and by April were at 1561mg a day.
However, a major police operation in May arrested four people and seized half a kilo of meth when police intercepted a vehicle at Picton headed to Westport.
The programme tests for indicators of consumption of methamphetamine, MDMA, cocaine, fentanyl and heroin.
The samples are taken as 24-hour composites, across one week per month at the Westport site, and every second month at the Greymouth and Hokitika test sites.
They show estimates for consumption for methamphetamine, MDMA and cocaine, all routinely detected in the wastewater.
Nationally, methamphetamine use in the first quarter of this year averaged an estimated 33kg per week, with an estimated weekly social harm cost of $34.6million.
All districts in the programme recorded above-average methamphetamine use compared to the previous year.
MDMA use remained stable, averaging an estimated 6.9kg per week, equating to an estimated weekly social harm cost of $1.4m.
Cocaine use has also increased nationally, averaging an estimated 4.5kg per week, for the first quarter of 2025.
This equates to an estimated weekly social harm cost of $1.7m.
The Westport News has reported that across the region, seven Kāinga Ora homes have tested positive for methamphetamine contamination over the past four years with the cost of fixing the properties more than $200,000. — Meg Fulford, Greymouth Star