How Much Cocaine Is In Nantucket's Sewage? 3x National Average

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Eight months of wastewater surveillance data show consistently elevated levels of cocaine in Nantucket’s sewage - with spikes in October and December 2025 that were nearly three times the national average - even as island police have made numerous high-profile cocaine busts, including the largest in the department’s history.

The levels of other harmful substances in Nantucket’s wastewater, including fentanyl and meth, are far below regional and national levels, and even nicotine levels have largely remained below average. But the cocaine concentrations, which dramatically outstrip benchmarks for the region and the country at large, have drawn the most attention, making national headlines.

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When the body metabolises cocaine, most of it is converted to benzoylecgonine (BZE), the primary substance used in urinary drug tests for the stimulant. When cocaine levels rise, BZE levels usually follow. But despite the strikingly high levels of cocaine in Nantucket’s wastewater, BZE levels have mostly remained close to the national average, aside from a couple of significant spikes.

“Because Nantucket’s cocaine levels are above national and regional averages while BZE is often at or below average, the most likely explanations include dumping events, repeated small-scale disposal, or concurrent use with alcohol, which changes how cocaine is metabolized,” a note on the monitoring website reads in part.

Nantucket’s wastewater isn’t monitored for alcohol content.

Health director Roque Miramontes echoed these explanations.

“Certainly, dumping is a possibility,” he said. “Another is when cocaine is consumed with alcohol, it changes the metabolite that’s developed.”

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