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Cocaine pollution in rivers and lakes may disrupt behaviour of salmon, study finds (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 1 month ago by HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works to c/world@lemmy.world

14 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Traces of cocaine that pollute rivers and lakes may accumulate in the brains of salmon and disrupt their behaviour, according to researchers who warn of unknown consequences for fish populations.

Juvenile Atlantic salmon that were artificially exposed to the drug and its main breakdown product swam further and dispersed more widely across a lake, suggesting the substances can affect where the fish go, what they eat and how vulnerable they are to predators.

What impact the pollutants have when they enter watercourses from sewage works is unclear, but the fish may pay a price if they burn more energy, or face greater risks from predators if they have to forage for more food to keep their energy up, scientists say.

“Largely, we don’t know the consequences, but I expect there to be trade-offs,” said Dr Jack Brand at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. “They may end up in worse condition or have to offset it by foraging a lot more, meaning they spend more time out in the open.”

Scientists have said before that pollution from common drugs poses “a major and escalating risk to biodiversity” and have called on pharmaceutical companies to make greener medicines that breakdown in the environment. Concerns over the contaminants have been fuelled by reports of trout “addicted” to methamphetamine and perch losing their fear of predators because of antidepressant medications.

In 2019, tests on freshwater shrimp in rivers in Suffolk found traces of dozens of different drugs, including cocaine, methamphetamine, antidepressants, anxiolytics for anxiety and antipsychotics, but the researchers did not draw any conclusions about their potential to cause harm.

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[–] nkat2112@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Is there an opposite expression to, "I bit The Onion"?

[–] dtrain@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Schoundsfakenbutisttruen

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago

Or, colloquially, you could go with: Unglaublichaberwahr. 😋

[–] MJKee9@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I must be living under a rock.... Why is there so much cocaine in rivers in the first place?

[–] Martineski@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 month ago

Fucking mermaids...

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago

Because the Big 5 can't zoot it fast enough. 🤌🏼

[–] SCmSTR@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I still will never understand why storm drains or sewers from anywhere in society ever runoff into streams, rivers, or any natural body of water. That concept or design technique or whatever has always seemed bizarre.

[–] antlion@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 1 month ago

In early engineering storm water was a problem that you want to drain as quickly as possible - so the solution was to pave everything including the creeks. Through many urban floods it has been recognized that infiltration into soil is the best solution for pollutants, flooding, and groundwater recharge. But we still have millions of acres of hardscape that needs to be re-designed to soak into the ground and only overflow if necessary.

But that said a lot of cocaine could enter natural waters directly by being illegally trafficked in boats, drones, or planes that crash. The real problem here is the war on drugs - cocaine was once available at every corner drug store. No illegal trafficking, no pollution.

[–] tinned_tomatoes@feddit.uk 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Where would you have the runoff go?

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago

Somewhere not in their jurisdiction, traditionally.

[–] greendog@lemmy.zip 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I'm so excited for the Cocaine Salmon movie

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 month ago

The crowd at the premiere'll be on a razor's edge, for sure.

[–] knotRyder@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

Did they say thank you?

[–] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 1 points 1 month ago

In assuming the salmon will be come ill tempered and bite someone's head off.