Cocaine use continues to climb in Canberra, wastewater testing has revealed

The latest national wastewater drug monitoring program results, published by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, reveals methylamphetamine is now the most consumed illicit drug in the country.

But for cocaine distributors, Canberra is now one of Australia's most lucrative markets.

"The Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales and [parts of] Queensland had the highest capital city [cocaine] consumption figures in the nation," the report stated.

Canberra's estimated cocaine consumption exceeded 880 milligrams per 1000 people per day as drug distributors, supplied through organised crime networks, took advantage of the ACT's relative wealth and the population's fierce appetite for the product.

Even enormous local drug busts, such as that seen in late 2019 when 380kg of cocaine was found hidden inside the hollow metal lifting arm of an excavator delivered to a Bungendore landscaping company, appear to have had little effect on interrupting the local drug supply.

The report's authors said cocaine use had been increasing in most capital cities and many regional parts of Australia "for a few years now".

"With the easing of [COVID-19] restrictions in the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania, it [cocaine use] has increased sharply," the report stated.

The data revealed the ACT's cocaine use had been climbing steadily since the August 2018 quarterly sampling of sewer waste, peaking in October 2020 at 1000mg per 1000 people per day as the territory slowly began to return to work following the coronavirus restrictions.

Use of cannabis is also on the increase in the ACT since the government last February allowed the possession of small amounts of the drug.

"Cannabis use in the Australian Capital Territory and regional parts of the Northern Territory, Queensland and South Australia have been steadily increasing. Elsewhere, consumption has been largely stable, with some short-term fluctuations," the report found.

One of the significant four-year trends was the early rise in methylamphetamine use in regional parts of the country, but this tapered off quickly with the onset of the pandemic.

"With the onset of the pandemic and various restrictions coming into effect in early 2020, use of methylamphetamine dropped substantially," the report stated.

"In the current reporting period of August (all sites) and October (capital cities), levels in regional and capital city Australia have declined to the lowest levels since the start of the program in 2016."

But even with this reduction, when calculated in doses "the drug is still used at higher levels than any other illicit substance".

The ACT recorded its highest quarterly spike in methylamphetamine use in December 2019, when it hit 18mg per 1000 people per day.