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STATE News:

The Governor’s Office and New Mexico Environment Department, to ensure the health and safety of school communities, launched an innovative wastewater testing program in public schools across the state. This program is intended to serve as a proactive measure to detect and address drug use among the school population.

The results for Los Alamos Public Schools (LAPS) waste water testing for drugs was released Tuesday. 

“­We cooperated with the state in this initiative voluntarily. We know that it is important to gather information on drug use in our community from as many sources as possible to be able to have honest conversations about how to support our students,” LAPS Superintendent Jennifer Guy said. “LAPS was negative for everything except amphetamines, which we expected because of many common medications such as concerta, ritalin, and adderol that students have been prescribed.”

Superintendent Jennifer Guy said the district understands that this is just one data point and does not mean LAPS does not have any drug use, “but it establishes baseline data for us to monitor over time and helps us understand where we need to focus intervention and education. I am pleased to see these results.”

To see the results, click this link, then scroll all the way to the bottom. The first reports are on opioids. Los Alamos results are on page 8. Then below that are the results for stimulants. Again, Los Alamos results are on page 8.