Marijuana remains one of the most trafficked illicit drugs in Canada. (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)

The B.C. Lower Mainland, southern Ontario and greater Montreal are three major hubs of organized crime and illicit drug activity in the country, a report released Friday says.

The report by the Criminal Intelligence Service Canada says the three areas have the most sophisticated and dynamic criminal activity.

In B.C., more than 17 police units and government agencies are actively working together to combat organized crime, said Sgt. Tim Shields, a spokesman for the RCMP in British Columbia.

But he says police are still losing the battle. "I am not going to sit here and tell you that we are on top of organized crime, because we are not," he told CBC News in a telephone interview.

RCMP in Princeton, B.C., seized about 132,000 ecstacy pills from hidden compartments in an old car during a routine traffic check Thursday. (RCMP)

Marijuana remains one of the most trafficked illicit drugs in Canada, and is produced, distributed and exported via an extensive organized crime network, the CISC report says.

The marijuana trade in B.C. is worth about $6 billion, Shields said.

"That doesn't even include the revenue from the sales of crystal meth, cocaine and heroin, and also from identity theft, credit card fraud, prostitution, gun smuggling, human trafficking, and money laundering," he said.

"Organized crime is big, big business."

Street gangs fill void left by biker gangs

CISC says street gangs are growing in popularity, in urban centres, smaller towns and aboriginal communities across the country.

In Quebec in particular, street gangs are filling the void left by the major crackdown on motorcycle gangs in 2001, CISC says.

Montreal police Chief Yvan Delorme said police agencies need to work together to tackle the problem because street gangs often have ties to larger, more organized crime networks.

At the same time, Montreal police say motorcycle gangs still remain a powerful force. Insp. Robert Chartrand said police need to keep the pressure on gangs so that they don't grow in power.

Canada is also one of the major producers of ecstasy for both local and international drug markets, says the CISC report, and a sizeable bust on Thursday shows how the Lower Mainland is part of that trade.

RCMP in Princeton, B.C., seized about 132,000 ecstasy pills from hidden compartments in an old car pulled over for a routine traffic check.

The pills were blue, red, orange and green and embossed with a Playboy Bunny logo, Shields said Friday.

The male driver, 46, and a woman passenger, 28, both from Vancouver, have been charged with possession of a controlled substance for the purposes of trafficking, Shield said.