Queenstown parents were this week given the chance to increase their awareness of drug use and related issues through a visit by a leading drug educator.
Dale Kirk, managing director of drug education and advisory company Methcon Group, spoke to a gathering of parents at Wakatipu High School.
The Otago Daily Times spoke to Mr Kirk following educational visits to Cromwell, Wanaka and Roxburgh.
Mr Kirk said the crux of the presentation was teaching parents what to look for in relation to abuse of alcohol and drugs, the most harmful of which was crystal meth.
"It's so they can recognise things going on in their families and community and hopefully allow them to resolve things before they get too bad," Mr Kirk said.
"If you have an idea of what to look out for, you can be in a position to recognise those things."
He said a lot of people were "naive" about such signs, which included physical and behavioural changes and the presence of drug paraphernalia.
And some people did not recognise the smell of marijuana smoke, he said.
Learning to recognise such signs was especially important given the "changing landscape" of drug use, illustrated by the ongoing rise and fall of drugs such as Kronic.
Mr Kirk had previously spent 13 years working in the police, most of that time as a detective doing drug squad work before leaving in 2006 to start a private investigation company.
He came into contact with Methcon, which he bought last year after previous owner Michael Sabin left to enter politics.
Mr Kirk believed young people in the Wakatipu area, in particular, were at a higher risk of exposure to drugs because of the volume of travellers coming and going, and the inevitable drug use associated with that.
"The drug dealers in New Zealand know this. Queenstown is a strong drug destination for dealers who will travel here ... and the people who are selling are selling both to tourists and locals."
For parents unable to attend the presentation he recommended spending half an hour viewing the Methcon website, www.methcon.co.nz.
