Water Crisis: What Salmon on Cocaine Reveal About Wastewater
A study by Swedish researchers exposed Atlantic salmon to cocaine and its main breakdown product, benzoylecgonine, at concentrations found in many waterways. The salmon exposed to benzoylecgonine swam twice as far as those in clean water, indicating behavioral disruption. The article argues this demonstrates how current wastewater treatment fails to remove drug residues, throwing river and marine ecosystems out of balance. It notes that conservative and far-right MEPs recently voted to delay a fourth treatment stage designed to filter chemicals and pharmaceuticals. The piece contextualizes the issue within the history of water pollution in European rivers like the Oder, Elbe, and Rhine, and the ongoing debate over advanced wastewater treatment.
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