World News for Students of English

19-06-2026 15:00

A new report by the European Union Drugs Agency reveals that cocaine use is rising fast across Europe.

Based on drug residues found in city wastewater. Spanish and Belgian cities recorded the largest samples; the Spanish town of Lleida topped the continent’s chart.

Spain has become the main hotspot for the drug, as Barcelona and Lleida saw the steepest increases in consumption. Other growing areas were discovered in Denmark and Slovenia. While wastewater shows where the most drugs are used, a population survey showed that Norway and the Netherlands actually have the highest consumption rates among adults.

To fight this problem, police are tracking new trafficking routes. Drug gangs are increasingly using smaller ports, drones, and boats to land on remote beaches in Spain and Portugal to avoid detection. A massive police operation recently hit a major route across the ocean, known as the Atlantic Cocaine Highway. 54 people were arrested and 11 tonnes of cocaine seized.

Difficult words: residue (a small amount of something that stays behind after the main part has gone, been used, or washed away), consumption (using, eating, drinking, or taking something into your body), rate (a measurement of how often something happens, or how fast it changes over a specific period of time).

You can watch the video news lower on this page.