Victoria drug checking facility marks one year in community, plans to expand

In the fight against the toxic drug crisis, a downtown Victoria drug checking facility has hit its one year anniversary as a storefront.

Substance is a collaboration between University of Victoria students, graduates, and professors. The group checks street drugs to see what is in them, and if they are toxic. It's a service that Dave Keeler says has saved his life.

"You never know what you’re getting out there right now," he said Wednesday.

Substance relies on cutting edge technology to let illicit drug users know exactly what they are taking, and how strong it is.

"This way we empower users of drugs to make an informed decision,” said Substance co-founder and UVic chemistry professor Dennis Hore.

Substance is a storefront drug-checking clinic located in Victoria’s North Park neighbourhood. Its services have become more important than ever because street drugs are more toxic, and less predictable, than ever before, according to advocates.

"There's a reason why it's marked on the side of your beer can how strong it is, it allows you to control how much you're ingesting and the rate you're ingesting it at," said Fred Cameron with Solid Outreach Society.

"When you don’t know what you're getting, it’s too late once you plunge."

Substance celebrated its one year anniversary as a storefront Wednesday. Previously, it was less visible and operated in rotating locations, including basements.

Bruce Wallace is one of its co-founders. He says the new facility is in a more prominent physical location and brings a heightened presence in the community, which is important for reducing the stigma associated with drug addiction.

"The storefront is an anti-stigma campaign in real life," said Wallace. "Being able to not have to hide around drug use and being able to be open and have those exchanges with people."

The service is free and anonymous, and has been busier than ever during the pandemic.

More than 2,200 people died from drug overdoses in B.C. last year, and B.C.’s Chief Coroner, Lisa Lapointe, said Wednesday that a regulated safe supply of drugs is what's needed most to help curb the crisis.

But until that happens on a large scale, sites like Substance are critical, she says.

"[They provide] an ability to help manage their safety," said Lapointe

The team at Substance plans to expand to mobile locations around Vancouver Island to help folks in rural parts of the island manage their safety too.