Cocaine is causing some eels in London’s famous River Thames to be “hyperactive,” new research by King’s College London shows.
A team of scientists at the university studied wastewater that’s entering into the river from nearby sewers during storms and found traces of the drug within 24 hours of the overflow, the Independent reports. Compared to other major cities, the level of cocaine entering London’s water system — likely through users’ urine — is much higher.
“Increases in caffeine, cocaine and benzoylecgonine [a metabolite] were observed 24 hours after sewer overflow events,’ King’s College London researchers said in a paper that detailed their findings, according to the Evening Standard.
