B.C. urged to fund drug testing ahead of festival season

There’s a push to get B.C. to help with drug testing for the return of the summer festival circuit. Some worry that without harm reduction plans, the events could turn dangerous and even lethal.

Good Night Out Vancouver co-founder Stacy Forrester is among those advocating for more measures. She wrote to the province to ask for funding to help festivals with programs, including drug testing. The group, which recently started patrolling the Granville Strip again, is worried about the return of nightlife for young people now that restrictions are lifted or lifting.

“I’ve seen more and more festivals take interest in some form of harm reduction,” Forrester said.

“Many young adults learn their harm reduction skills through friends or through going to events and seeing those behaviors modeled or perhaps through on campus activities which they also haven’t had. Many young adults may have taken a break totally from consuming over the pandemic and now be back,” she said.

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At the “Get Your Drugs Tested” centre in Vancouver’s East Hastings neighbourhood, a new milestone was hit recently with 25,000 drug tests completed. It’s getting a mobile truck ready to offer free testing at summer music festivals.

But Dana Larsen, the founder of the centre, argues while they have two drug testing machine, the province has more than a dozen.

“They’re only offering drug testing at certain spots, maybe just a few hours a day or you can drop something off and get your results a week later. And so we’re doing about three quarters of all the testing in British Columbia, just out of this one tiny spot here with our limited resources. I’d really love to see the province do more of this and invest a few million dollars,” he said.

According to tests at the site, crack and cocaine are more likely to be contaminated.

“It’s still a pretty low number but we definitely see fentanyl showing up in those things more than we see it showing up in say MDMA,” Larsen said.

Forrester, who also runs a harm reduction program for festivals, says B.C. could at least help fund drug tests if it won’t mandate them for large events.

In 2019, a B.C. coroner’s report recommended drug testing at festivals after a 16-year-old girl died at a Kelowna event from a deadly amount of MDA (also known as sass) after taking what she thought was ecstasy, which can have an increased risk of overdose.

The B.C. Minister of Mental Health and Addictions was not available for an interview, but her office says in a statement it will review the letter and provide comment.

It states in part, “toxic drugs are circulating, and we’re asking people to look out for one another and help keep our friends and family members who use drugs alive.”