DRUG CZAR FOCUSES ON METH

ASHEVILLE - Methamphetamine is still widely available in the mountains.

But strategies working in Western states - where the drug's epidemic began
- - should start helping here, too, the nation's drug czar said Tuesday.

"I was just out in Portland, Ore., where they have begun to see declines in
purity of 25 percent of Mexican-produced (meth) and doubling of price,"
John Walters, director of the White House drug policy office said during a
City Hall press conference.

"That suggests they can't keep supply up," he said.

U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor, R-Brevard, sponsored the press conference and a
closed-door meeting for Walters and local government and law enforcement
officials.

Some have said crimes and safety concerns with the highly addictive drug
are a top concern.

Walters spoke mostly about progress made in Western states and the next
steps in combating the drug. He also addressed crack cocaine, the drug
targeted most by Asheville officials.

Nationwide, meth use among young people has declined more than 30 percent
and incidents involving local drug labs have taken a sharp downturn,
Walters said.

Most of that progress has been in Western and Central-Western states.
Efforts there include strong restrictions on the sale of cold medicines
with ingredients to make the drug, a federal operation against Canadian
black market imports and improved access to meth-specific treatment, he said.

The next phase should emphasize tightening U.S. borders to prevent drug
trafficking, voluntary random drug testing at schools and expanding
treatment for addicts. Walters said the random testing would be used to
direct students to treatment rather than prosecute them.

"Let's stop the destruction at the front end through both prevention and
intervention and treatment."

Walters praised Taylor and other members of Congress for passing the Combat
Meth Act to restrict the sale of cold medicine in ways similar to the state
laws.

Taylor's Democratic opponent, Heath Shuler, supports similar measures,
spokesman Andrew Whalen said. Shuler has met with sheriffs to talk about
the issue.

Law enforcement found nine meth labs statewide in 1999, but that number
climbed to 177 labs in 2003. In 2005, 328 labs were discovered.

There has been a sharp decline this year, which local officials credit to a
seven-month-old state law that limits cold medicine sales. The State Bureau
of Investigation counted 139 seizures meth lab busts from January to June,
compared with 207 during the same period last year.

Mayor Terry Bellamy, Councilman Carl Mumpower and Police Chief Bill Hogan
said they appreciated the federal government's help in programs such as the
Weed and Seed initiative for city public housing.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.