Back in 1985, Peru was the global hub of coca production, growing around 65% of the global total, with Bolivia at 25% and Colombia just 10%. That was down 5% from the year before, but still resulted in major environmental impacts. In 2019, an estimated 234,200 hectares (578,720 acres) of coca were grown in Bolivia, Peru and Colombia. Image by Jernej Furman via Flickr ( CC BY 2.0). An estimated 20 million people used cocaine in 2019. Meanwhile, the titanic struggle continues between those determined to curb illegal drug use and the shadowy forces intent on producing, trafficking and consuming the quintessential party drug snorted by millions, as they propel biodiversity loss, adverse land-use change, waterway contamination with toxic chemicals, and adjacent criminal industries such as wildlife trafficking and gold mining - even contributing to climate change.įrom source nations to consumer countries, the infamous white powder known as coke, or blow, is leaving a trail of environmental destruction that is contributing to the destabilization of Earth’s “ safe operating space,” vital to keeping our planet habitable. Today, the impacts all along the illegal drug supply chain are even better understood and documented, but remain underrecognized and underreported. Studies raised alarm bells in the 1990s over narco-driven deforestation, soil degradation and pollution in Latin America. The environmental impacts of cocaine have long been known. Solutions implemented to deal with the drug problem, such as the aerial spraying of illegal coca crops, while locally effective in curbing illegal cultivation, also cause deforestation and biodiversity damage. Researchers argue that detaching the environmental harm caused by the cocaine trade from the long-lasting war on drugs is not possible.Often, when new narco-trafficking transport routes are established, like those in Central America, those same routes are used for other criminal activities such as wildlife and weapons trafficking. Indigenous peoples are often at the front lines of criminal gangs’ activities in producer and trafficking countries.Some of these effects, such as pollution impacts on eels and other aquatic species, have been documented, but most are still poorly understood, with many unresearched. Production, transit and consumption of the drug are exacting a heavy environmental toll, impacting tropical forests, freshwater and estuary ecosystems.Cocaine is one of the most widely used illicit drugs in the world, consumed by an estimated 20 million people in 2019, mostly in North America and Europe.
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