Sunday, May 01, 2011
Cleaning a meth lab in Arizona
Local law enforcement has been left picking up the cost of cleaning up busted meth labs now that the federal government has axed all funding for such work.
Due to budget cuts by President Barack Obama, the Drug Enforcement Administration has told counties and states that they’re on their own reclaiming local houses and buildings formerly used by drug merchants manufacturing methamphetamine.
Houses that were used as illegal meth labs often leave behind chemical residues in carpets, drywall, insulation and air ducts that can cause health problems, most notably respiratory ailments and migraines.
The federal government was spending about $10 million a year on meth cleanups. The loss of funding comes at a time when meth production is increasing in many parts of the United States, including North Carolina, Tennessee and Missouri.
“We’re in a situation that we need Congress to step up to the plate and provide this funding,” Greg McLeod, director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations, told the Raleigh News & Observer. “They’re passing the buck down to us.”
-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky
With Federal Funding Pulled, Meth Lab Cleanup in Crisis (by Barbara Barrett, Raleigh News & Observer)
CVS Fined $77 Million for Selling Meth Ingredients to Criminals (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
The Dangerous Afterlife of Meth Lab Homes (by Noel Brinkerhoff,
Drug Arrests: Whites Up; Blacks Down (by Kyle Kuersten, AllGov)
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