The ACT Drug Strategy Action Plan 2022-2026 (DSAP) is on track, according to a mid-point progress report: 27 of the 34 actions have been significantly progressed or completed.
Anita Mills, CEO of the drug sector peak body ATODA, said: “We have made significant progress towards achieving many of the targets laid out in the plan, and work is continuing across several key priority areas.”
The DSAP aims to address and minimise harms from alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and non-medical use of pharmaceuticals. It makes it easier to navigate services; reduces stigma; and supports users with other issues.
As part of the Action Plan, the ACT set up Australia’s first fixed-site drug checking service, CanTEST, in 2022. In its first two years of operation, the service tested nearly 3,000 samples, helping Canberrans to make safer choices: one in 10 people chose to discard potentially dangerous substances.
The government has invested in alcohol and other drug services and facilities, such as the Pathways to Assistance and Treatment (PAT) mobile clinic; the Take-Home Naloxone Program; Canberra’s first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander alcohol and other drug residential rehabilitation facility; and a new facility for Ted Noffs’ youth alcohol and other drug treatment service.
Drug law reforms and criminal justice initiatives have kept users out of the criminal justice system while ensuring they get the help they might need, health minister Rachel Stephen-Smith MLA said. The government has expanded the Drug and Alcohol Sentencing List from 35 to 42 concurrent participants, and reduced the maximum penalties for personal possession of illicit drugs through the Drugs of Dependence (Personal Use) Amendment Act 2022.
Ms Stephen-Smith said that stable community outcomes and declining drug-related charges demonstrated the changes worked for the benefit of the whole community.
Ms Mills agrees: “The cost-benefit analysis of harm reduction services in the ACT clearly shows that the current level of investment is having a positive impact on health and wellbeing outcomes in our community.”
The DSAP also aims to reduce vaping and tobacco smoking harms in the ACT. The government has secured a $1.065 million Federation Funding Agreement to enhance Quitline with digital support and establish a vaping cessation support service for young people.
The government funded an independent harm reduction review — led by the Australian National University and Burnet Institute, partnering with the Canberra Alliance for Harm Minimisation and Advocacy.
It found that current harm reduction interventions — including opioid maintenance therapy, needle and syringe programs, naloxone, and CanTEST — were cost-effective and could be expanded.
It also recommended new initiatives, such as drug consumption rooms, safer opioid supply, technological tools, a prison needle and syringe program, and integrating psycho-social and legal interventions with clinical services.
ATODA believes the establishment of a drug consumption room should be the next step for the ACT, Ms Mills said, and the government must resource peer workforce development and capacity building. The organisation also hopes the government will restrict online sales and delivery of alcohol.
Ms Mills said that people with complex needs — such as drug use, homelessness, mental illness, legal issues, or domestic violence — need support from all parts of government and the community working together.
Affordable housing in Curtin
Construction will begin next year on an affordable housing development in Curtin, expected to open in 2028.
The development will comprise 83 affordable rental units with one, two, and three-bedroom apartments, which will be leased to tenants at less than 75 per cent of market rate, and 15 supported housing apartments for people with enduring mental illness, managed by MyHome in Canberra.
Community housing provider Wesley Mission will deliver the project. The Uniting Church Property Trust (ACT) owns the leasehold.
“This development will deliver almost 100 safe, secure and affordable homes for people who need them most,” Andrew Tyndale, Wesley Mission’s chief investment and assets officer, said.
“Projects like this build stronger, more inclusive neighbourhoods, and it is a privilege for Wesley Mission to be part of such a forward-thinking and collaborative effort.”
Staff at the MyHome building will offer round-the-clock support. The building also includes a caregiver apartment and office, and communal spaces.
MyHome in Canberra committee members John Eyers and Evan Mann said: “This is a happy moment for hundreds of Canberrans who have donated to MyHome in Canberra over ten years, showing their support for people with enduring mental illnesses.”
The approach has been successful in HOME in Queanbeyan, Haven homes in Victoria, Clear Breeze Apartments in Brisbane, Mr Eyers and Mr Mann said.
AMC Architecture’s development application is under assessment.
The ACT Government has waived the lease variation charge, and covered the gap between the market rate and discounted rate of the affordable rental properties.
“These new affordable apartments will provide modern homes close to employment, education and public transport,” housing minister Yvette Berry MLA said. “The homes for people with enduring mental illnesses are an important addition to the range of supported housing in the ACT, which is a priority for this Government.”
The ACT Government is supporting this project through its Affordable Housing Project Fund — recently expanded to $100 million in the budget through an additional $145 million housing investment — and a construction grant.
It is one of seven projects funded under round one of the Federal Government’s Housing Australia Future Fund Facility (HAFFF).
A second round of HAFFF funding for 85 social homes was announced last week.
“This finance from governments is vital, but leaves a substantial need still for philanthropic and community contributions, which we will continue to help organise,” Mr Eyers and Mr Mann said.
30 years of bone marrow transplants
Canberra Health Services’s Bone Marrow Transplant Program turns 30 this week.
Bone marrow transplantation is used to treat blood cancers and other serious conditions.
Since the program was launched in 1995, more than 760 patients across the region have received bone marrow transplants. It has collected more than 1,600 bone marrow stem cells.
“Over the past 30 years of BMT, we’ve seen remarkable progress — patients living longer, families gaining new options, and treatments that were once out of reach becoming routine,” Canberra Hospital haematologist Associate Professor Maya Latimer said. “It’s an honour to support people through such a crucial part of their care.”
Autologous BMT gives patients a chance to grow healthy new blood cells. The patient’s blood cells are collected and frozen. After intensive chemotherapy has cleared out damaged cells, the frozen cells are returned, and navigate back to the patient’s bone marrow to regenerate healthy blood cells.
A cryogenic storage facility, commissioned in 2016, safely preserves stem cells for future use. This facility holds more than 1,000 bags of cells in three liquid nitrogen tanks.
Health minister Rachel Stephen-Smith MLA said the facility was “pivotal in ensuring the longevity and viability of stored stem cells. It not only enhances the capacity to treat patients but also positions the health service at the forefront of medical research and innovation.”
For more information on Canberra Hospital’s Haematology Service, visit: www.canberrahealthservices.act.gov.au/services-and-clinics/services/haematology-clinic
ANU’s green solutions to lithium extraction
Scientists at the Australian National University have developed a simple, cost-effective and environmentally friendlier process to extract valuable resources from brine deposits.
Brine mining is important for extracting lithium, a critical component of batteries. Globally, a significant portion of lithium comes from continental brine deposits.
In 2024, ANU researchers developed the world’s first thermal desalination method, where water remains in the liquid phase throughout the entire process. They have now successfully applied this method to brine concentration.
The method saves power because instead of electricity, it uses moderate heat generated directly from sunlight, or waste heat from machines such as air conditioners or industrial processes.
The ANU researchers have partnered with US-based company, Wacomet Water Co, to commercialise this technology in Australia and overseas.
Study lead Associate Professor Juan Felipe Torres and colleagues co-founded Soret Technologies, a spin-off from ANU.
“Our vision with Soret Technologies is to revolutionise brine concentration and desalination processes, making them more cost-effective through innovative thermodiffusion technology,” Associate Professor Torres said.
South Coast survey
Another ANU researcher, James DelBene, is keen to hear from visitors to the South Coast town of Narooma, a weekend destination for many Canberrans, to understand how people use and connect with Wagonga Inlet.
His survey is online: ANU Wagonga Inlet and Living Shoreline Community Survey.
