The high quantities of drug seizures in Ecuador have led to a new and unique construction material, cocaine. This comes after the amount of drugs seized in 2021 doubled in the country when compared to the previous year to more than 210 tonnes, mostly cocaine, said Ecuador’s police. The country is also said to be a transit point for gangs to ship cocaine to the United States and Europe. However, since incumbent President Guillermo Lasso came to power two years ago, Ecuador has ramped up its efforts to stop the flow of illicit drugs in and out of the country.&nbsp;

How does it work?

The country uses a so-called encapsulation method with the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) “out of desperation to make good on destroying the drugs”, the undersecretary for Drug Control at Ecuador’s Interior Ministry, told Reuters. The process includes pulverising seized bricks of cocaine in machines with some other materials at a waste disposal plant and then mixing the fine powder obtained with cement, sand and water to create concrete.&nbsp;

The waste treatment plant which is located at an undisclosed location outside the Ecuadorian capital city of Quito reportedly receives hundreds of blocks of cocaine hydrochloride and coca paste which is the precursor to cocaine, from across the country every week. Subsequently, as per technicians, it is broken down and mixed with glass, expired medicines and even oil waste, reported Reuters.&nbsp;

After this, the powder is mixed with other materials to produce a cement slurry to use in construction. According to the UN drug agency, as this slurry sets it combines with the rest of the materials mixed and forms a stable, hard and impenetrable matrix which prevents cocaine from seeping into the ground or being recovered.&nbsp;

“This procedure is cheaper, takes less time and doesn't affect the environment,”&nbsp;said Ecuador’s Director of Anti-Drug Investigation, Pablo Ramirez, while noting that&nbsp; the encapsulation of a tonne of cocaine takes less than three hours as opposed to incinerating the same amount of the illicit drug which can take at least 12 hours.&nbsp;

However, this cocaine-laced concrete has not been used for construction projects just yet. So far, the Ecuadorian authorities have been using this process to fill 15-metre-deep holes in the undisclosed location of the plant with layers of concrete which would later form a warehouse floor and they have no plans of using the encapsulated cocaine for other projects as of now.&nbsp; 
 
Ecuador’s drug problem&nbsp;

As mentioned earlier, since the country acts as a transit point for drugs sent to the US and Europe, authorities have seized record amounts of the illicit substance over the years. In 2022, while the number of seizures dropped slightly, the quantity of drugs found remained high which led to 27 police warehouses, where the illicit substances are stored before being destroyed, exceeding their maximum capacity.

Mera also told Reuters that the record amounts of drugs also surpassed the number of ovens used to incinerate the drugs which led to Ecuador using some of its excess cocaine to turn into construction material. Notably, the process of encapsulation has helped authorities to free some space at the police drug collection centres.

According to plant technicians, so far, nearly 350 tonnes of cocaine and its precursor coca paste seized between last year and the year before has been turned into construction material. While some 83 tonnes of cocaine is still waiting to be encapsulated, said Ramirez.&nbsp; 
 
(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" loading="”lazy”" src="https://www.wionews.com/live-tv/embed?autoplay=1&amp;mute=1" width="100%"></iframe>

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us <a href="https://www.wionews.com/content-contribution-registration-form">here</a>.

The high quantities of drug seizures in Ecuador have led to a new and unique construction material, cocaine. This comes after the amount of drugs seized in 2021 doubled in the country when compared to the previous year to more than 210 tonnes, mostly cocaine, said Ecuador’s police.

The high quantities of drug seizures in Ecuador have led to a new and unique construction material, cocaine. This comes after the amount of drugs seized in 2021 doubled in the country when compared to the previous year to more than 210 tonnes, mostly cocaine, said Ecuador’s police. The country is also said to be a transit point for gangs to ship cocaine to the United States and Europe. However, since incumbent President Guillermo Lasso came to power two years ago, Ecuador has ramped up its efforts to stop the flow of illicit drugs in and out of the country. How does it work? The country uses a so-called encapsulation method with the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) “out of desperation to make good on destroying the drugs”, the undersecretary for Drug Control at Ecuador’s Interior Ministry, told Reuters. The process includes pulverising seized bricks of cocaine in machines with some other materials at a waste disposal plant and then mixing the fine powder obtained with cement, sand and water to create concrete. The waste treatment plant which is located at an undisclosed location outside the Ecuadorian capital city of Quito reportedly receives hundreds of blocks of cocaine hydrochloride and coca paste which is the precursor to cocaine, from across the country every week. Subsequently, as per technicians, it is broken down and mixed with glass, expired medicines and even oil waste, reported Reuters. After this, the powder is mixed with other materials to produce a cement slurry to use in construction. According to the UN drug agency, as this slurry sets it combines with the rest of the materials mixed and forms a stable, hard and impenetrable matrix which prevents cocaine from seeping into the ground or being recovered. “This procedure is cheaper, takes less time and doesn't affect the environment,” said Ecuador’s Director of Anti-Drug Investigation, Pablo Ramirez, while noting that the encapsulation of a tonne of cocaine takes less than three hours as opposed to incinerating the same amount of the illicit drug which can take at least 12 hours. However, this cocaine-laced concrete has not been used for construction projects just yet. So far, the Ecuadorian authorities have been using this process to fill 15-metre-deep holes in the undisclosed location of the plant with layers of concrete which would later form a warehouse floor and they have no plans of using the encapsulated cocaine for other projects as of now. Ecuador’s drug problem As mentioned earlier, since the country acts as a transit point for drugs sent to the US and Europe, authorities have seized record amounts of the illicit substance over the years. In 2022, while the number of seizures dropped slightly, the quantity of drugs found remained high which led to 27 police warehouses, where the illicit substances are stored before being destroyed, exceeding their maximum capacity. Mera also told Reuters that the record amounts of drugs also surpassed the number of ovens used to incinerate the drugs which led to Ecuador using some of its excess cocaine to turn into construction material. Notably, the process of encapsulation has helped authorities to free some space at the police drug collection centres. According to plant technicians, so far, nearly 350 tonnes of cocaine and its precursor coca paste seized between last year and the year before has been turned into construction material. While some 83 tonnes of cocaine is still waiting to be encapsulated, said Ramirez. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Cocaine to concrete: Ecuador finds an innovative way to utilise surplus of seized illicit drug

Based on intelligence inputs on drug trafficking, Indian Coast Guard air and sea assets intercepted three Sri Lankan boats off the Lakshadweep region on India’s west coast on March 18. Boarding and search of the three vessels led to the seizure of 300 kg high-grade heroin, 5 Ak-47 rifles with 1,000 live rounds, from one of them named Ravihansi. The estimated value of the seized contraband is Rs.3000 cr (over USD 412 million).&nbsp;

The Sri Lankan boats and their 19 crew were escorted to Vizhinjam in Kerala for a further joint investigation by Indian authorities.&nbsp;

K.Natarajan, Director General, ICG said that the ICG received the intelligence on March 15 and five ships were diverted, besides aircraft that were coordinating. On March 18, they made contact with the vessels, as they were moving suspiciously, south of Minicoy. “Certain movement indicated that the vessels had contraband on board. We encountered a vessel named Chetrani 6 towing a fishing boat Ravhansi, which had a technical snag. Boarding and searching was done from 18th and after two days of search the concealed weapons and drugs were seized” he said.&nbsp;

According to India’s Coast Guard, this is the second major anti-drug trafficking operation undertaken by them off the West Coast, within a fortnight. &nbsp;On March 5, in a similar operation, the CG had apprehended Sri Lankan vessel Akarsha Duwa off Minicoy island. The boat with six crew had admitted to carrying 200 kg of Heroin, 60 kg hashish, which they jettisoned at sea, on sighting ICG assets.&nbsp;

In November 2020, ICG had apprehended Sri Lankan boat Shenaya Duwa off Kanyakumari, carrying 120kg narcotics, worth around Rs.1,000 cr and five weapons.&nbsp;

Over the last year, the ICG has seized about 1.6 tons of narcotics worth nearly Rs.4,900cr, which is close to half of the drug seizures worth Rs.10,952cr, made since their inception.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Based on intelligence inputs on drug trafficking, Indian Coast Guard air and sea assets intercepted three Sri Lankan boats off the Lakshadweep region on India’s west coast on March 18.

Based on intelligence inputs on drug trafficking, Indian Coast Guard air and sea assets intercepted three Sri Lankan boats off the Lakshadweep region on India’s west coast on March 18. Boarding and search of the three vessels led to the seizure of 300 kg high-grade heroin, 5 Ak-47 rifles with 1,000 live rounds, from one of them named Ravihansi. The estimated value of the seized contraband is Rs.3000 cr (over USD 412 million). The Sri Lankan boats and their 19 crew were escorted to Vizhinjam in Kerala for a further joint investigation by Indian authorities. K.Natarajan, Director General, ICG said that the ICG received the intelligence on March 15 and five ships were diverted, besides aircraft that were coordinating. On March 18, they made contact with the vessels, as they were moving suspiciously, south of Minicoy. “Certain movement indicated that the vessels had contraband on board. We encountered a vessel named Chetrani 6 towing a fishing boat Ravhansi, which had a technical snag. Boarding and searching was done from 18th and after two days of search the concealed weapons and drugs were seized” he said. According to India’s Coast Guard, this is the second major anti-drug trafficking operation undertaken by them off the West Coast, within a fortnight. On March 5, in a similar operation, the CG had apprehended Sri Lankan vessel Akarsha Duwa off Minicoy island. The boat with six crew had admitted to carrying 200 kg of Heroin, 60 kg hashish, which they jettisoned at sea, on sighting ICG assets. In November 2020, ICG had apprehended Sri Lankan boat Shenaya Duwa off Kanyakumari, carrying 120kg narcotics, worth around Rs.1,000 cr and five weapons. Over the last year, the ICG has seized about 1.6 tons of narcotics worth nearly Rs.4,900cr, which is close to half of the drug seizures worth Rs.10,952cr, made since their inception.

Indian Coast Guard’s big haul: Over USD 412 million worth drugs, 5 Ak-47rifles, 1,000 rounds seized 

drugs-seized

Drugs Seized, News on Drugs Seized, stories on Drugs Seized, articles on Drugs Seized, Drugs Seized stories at Wion, Drugs Seized news, Drugs Seized latest news