COMBATING METHAMPHETAMINE IN THE COMMONWEALTH

What do road flares, battery acid, drain cleaner and cold medicine
all have in common? First the obvious, each item is relatively
inexpensive and can be easily purchased at retail stores in virtually
every community in the Commonwealth. However, they each possess
another similarity - they are key ingredients used in the production
of methamphetamine, a drug considered to be the number one enemy of
nearly one-third of law enforcement agencies across the country.

Whereas drugs like cocaine and heroin are typically imported from
drug labs in other countries, methamphetamine, more commonly known as
meth, can easily be produced in any home or building in the United
States. All one needs to make the drug is a few simple ingredients
like the four just mentioned and a heat source (some forms of meth
don't even require that). On average, the product of a $100 purchase
at the local hardware store or pharmacy could fetch more than $1,000
on the street.

It goes without saying that use of methamphetamine is both extremely
addictive and terribly hazardous to one's health. However even its
production, which is increasing exponentially throughout the nation,
is dangerous. Many of the chemicals found in these labs are corrosive
or flammable and the vapors that result from the chemical reactions
can attack mucous membranes, skin, eyes and the respiratory tract.
Inhaling the toxic fumes has also lead to disfigurement or severe
damage to the central nervous system.

While finding meth labs is hard enough, it's when they're raided that
the difficulties truly begin for public safety officers. The
byproducts of meth, as well as the volatile ingredients themselves,
are enormously dangerous and expensive to handle. Cleanup of a lab
usually costs $5,000 to $10,000 and handlers are put at great risk of
exposure. In fact, over the past decade more than 200 police,
firefighters and medical personnel have been treated for ailments
associated with meth cleanups.

Given the widespread damage meth use inflicts on society, combating
this drug represents an increasing drain on state budgets. However,
96 cents of every dollar spent on this issue is directed toward
treatment and cleanup, not prevention and public awareness.
Massachusetts put about $50 million toward the war on drugs in this
year's budget, with the majority of funds being used for treatment
clinics, not anti-drug law enforcement training. What little training
there is usually revolves around community policing, a measure that
former Gov. Mitt Romney repeatedly vetoed.

Thankfully the Legislature consistently overrode the governor's veto
and our approach in this regard is making the fight against drug
production more effective. Meth makers are much easier to locate and
arrest when cops and residents are interconnected with the community.
Moreover, the Legislature's fiscal 2007 budget includes more than $20
million in funding for this line item and similar vital programs to
keep abusive and vile substances from establishing a strong foothold
in Massachusetts.

My colleagues and I are also exploring ways to make it harder to
obtain the seemingly innocuous ingredients of meth. Federal law
currently requires retailers to place all products containing
ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanalmine behind the counter,
to maintain a logbook which customers must sign after showing
identification and to limit daily purchases by customers to 3.6
grams. However, one bill presently before the Legislature would also
require that those who purchase a cold remedy like pseudophedrine to
be at least 18 years old and show a valid photo identification.
Furthermore, we are looking at mechanisms that will regulate the
volume of pseudophedrine one may buy in a single purchase. If meth
producers are using conventional materials to produce their illegal
substance, we must open a front at the places where those items are purchased.

What do 10 million Americans have in common? They are the number of
citizens who have tried methamphetamine. Over the last 10 years, the
population of meth users has surged unabated, and it's highly likely
that their rolls will continue to swell. That is unless we adjust our
combat tactics in the new battlefront opened by methamphetamine in
the ongoing war against drug abuse. We may not be able to win every
battle, but we must nonetheless fight each skirmish, no matter how
small or large, with vigilance and vigor to protect our loved ones
from illicit drugs and avoid traveling down that long and painful
road to perdition. That is something we all have in common.