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BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - The amount of Colombian land devoted to growing coca, the raw material in cocaine, fell by nearly 10 percent last year on record eradication attempts, the United Nations estimates.
The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime calculated Colombia had 190,300 acres of coca plantations in 2006, or 300 square miles, down from 212,500 acres the previous year, a source familiar with the data said on Tuesday. The source requested anonymity because the figures will not be officially released until June.
Last year, Colombia's drug police, with U.S. backing, used planes to fumigate 424,000 acres of coca and opium poppies, and manually eradicated an additional 42,100 acres of coca. In 2005, authorities fumigated almost 345,900 acres.
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