New Statistics Canada data released between January 2024 and March 2026 reveals striking regional disparities in illicit drug consumption across eight Canadian cities, tracking chemical byproducts in wastewater systems serving roughly 9.2 million people. While Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, recorded the highest methamphetamine levels in the study, Metro Vancouver consistently registered the highest fentanyl readings. Analysts note that these measurements provide a reliable proxy for consumption, though local drug market dynamics and trafficking networks heavily shape the results.
Prince Albert and Prairie Cities Lead in Methamphetamine Levels
Prince Albert recorded the highest methamphetamine concentrations among all monitored cities, alongside the most dramatic fluctuations in both methamphetamine and cocaine. By March 2026, the city’s estimated methamphetamine load reached 2,003 milligrams per 1,000 people per day—more than nine times the roughly 214 milligrams recorded in Toronto that same month. Saskatoon and Moncton, New Brunswick, also reported some of the highest methamphetamine levels in the study, with Saskatoon logging a reading of about 958 milligrams per 1,000 people per day in March 2026. Edmonton similarly maintained elevated methamphetamine loads, reaching 1,071 milligrams per 1,000 people per day in January 2025 before settling at 624 in March 2026.
Kora DeBeck, a professor in the School of Public Policy at Simon Fraser University, explained that substance use drivers vary widely by region. “There’s many different drivers of different substance use, and one of them is just what is available in the market,” DeBeck said, adding that regional patterns connect closely to how local drug production and trafficking networks operate.
Did You Know? Statistics Canada’s wastewater survey measures drug metabolites—the chemical byproducts excreted after the human body breaks down substances—collected during one-week sampling windows every two months.
Fentanyl Dominates in Metro Vancouver While Cocaine Peaks in Halifax
Metro Vancouver consistently registered the highest fentanyl levels of any participating city throughout the survey period. However, StatCan noted that average fentanyl readings declined in 2025 and early 2026 compared to 2024, a shift that coincided with a decrease in Vancouver’s unregulated drug death rate. DeBeck cautioned that fentanyl prevalence does not simply reflect consumer demand, noting that the drug “just arrived and was there, and then people became dependent on it.” Monty Ghosh, an addiction physician and researcher at the University of Alberta, added that falling fentanyl measurements may not capture all opioid market activity because different synthetic formulations exist that standard wastewater tests might not measure.
Meanwhile, coastal cities displayed markedly different stimulant profiles. Halifax recorded the lowest methamphetamine levels in March 2026 at just 56 milligrams per 1,000 people per day, but posted high cocaine levels at about 1,734 milligrams. Prince Albert’s cocaine reading of roughly 5,296 milligrams was about three times that of Halifax. StatCan noted that in 2024, cocaine was involved in 86 per cent of stimulant-related deaths in Nova Scotia, compared to just 14 per cent for methamphetamine. In New Brunswick, conversely, methamphetamine was involved in 63 per cent of stimulant toxicity deaths.
Expert Insight: Wastewater analysis serves as a valuable epidemiological tool for tracking population-level substance use trends without relying solely on criminal justice statistics or self-reported surveys. Yet, as researchers emphasize, these chemical metrics must be interpreted alongside local mortality data, shifts in illicit supply formulas, and transient population changes such as tourism or commuting.
MDMA Stands Out in Toronto and Montreal Records
While Toronto’s methamphetamine readings remained far below Prairie levels, the city registered the highest average MDMA levels among the eight cities, averaging about 40 milligrams per 1,000 people per day between July 2024 and March 2026. Montreal shared a similar stimulant profile with relatively low methamphetamine and higher MDMA readings, but stood out for having the lowest levels of several opioids in the study. Montreal’s codeine levels never exceeded about 44 milligrams per 1,000 people per day—well below the combined-city average range of 97 to 219 milligrams—while also recording the lowest methadone levels and minimal oxycodone and morphine readings.
StatCan analyst Sianne Kuang told CBC News that wastewater tracking serves as a “pretty good proxy of drug consumption” within the catchment areas of participating treatment plants. Nevertheless, agencies and researchers emphasize that wastewater data represents only one piece of a complex public health puzzle. Commuting patterns, tourism, and special events can introduce variables into the estimates, and local manufacturing differences mean that regional drug supplies utilize distinct chemical precursors and formulas.
What factors might explain why specific synthetic stimulants like MDMA concentrate more heavily in major urban centers like Toronto compared to smaller Prairie municipalities?
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the wastewater survey actually measure?
The survey measures drug metabolites—chemical byproducts excreted after the body breaks down substances—in wastewater samples collected during one-week sampling windows every two months.
Which city recorded the highest methamphetamine levels?
Prince Albert recorded the highest methamphetamine levels in the study, reaching an estimated load of 2,003 milligrams per 1,000 people per day in March 2026.
Does wastewater data show exact individual consumption numbers?
No. StatCan cautions that the survey does not show exactly how many people use a drug or how much they consume, though it functions as a useful proxy for consumption within a treatment plant’s catchment area.
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