Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. (Photo: tn.gov)
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is proposing a $3 million pilot project to test sewage from Knoxville-area high schools, college dorms and other locations for illicit drugs, Director David Rausch said Tuesday.
If the budget for the project is approved, testing will initially begin on wastewater from 12 public high schools and 16 college dorms. Another 120 Knoxville locations could be selected for wastewater testing at the TBI’s discretion, Rausch said. The pilot would run for 30 weeks.
The testing is intended to identify specific illicit drugs and the concentration of drug use in a particular location using a key surveillance tool deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic to monitor disease prevalence.
Results of school and dorm-based wastewater testing, Rausch said, can help keep parents and school administrators informed about student drug use.
“That becomes a great piece for those administrators at the school to be able to educate parents and make them aware this is an issue,” Rausch said in presenting the proposal to Gov. Bill Lee as part of his agency’s overall request for a $21 million budget increase next year.