GOVERNOR ASKED TO SPEED UP RULES FOR CLEANING METH SITES

Policy Sought For Lifting Quarantine On Property

A blue-ribbon panel has asked Gov. Phil Bredesen to help speed up the
process for writing rules on decontaminating sites where the drug
methamphetamine has been made.

The Governor's Task Force on Methamphetamine Abuse has asked the
governor to relax rules for the Tennessee Department of Environment
and Conservation as they study the issue. The task force, led by state
Agriculture Commissioner Ken Givens, said the process needs to be
abbreviated because of a state law that went into effect July 1.

The new legislation gives law enforcement the authority to quarantine
properties that have been contaminated by toxic residue from the
manufacture of methamphetamine, a highly addictive drug that can be
made in a kitchen using mostly common materials.

These properties are to remain quarantined until they are determined
''safe for human use.''

But the state does not have a scientific standard for determining when
either a former meth house, apartment or hotel room is clean enough
for habitation. Normally, it would take a year or more to develop such
a standard.

Yesterday, the Governor's Task Force on Methamphetamine Abuse said the
state can't wait that long.

''It can't wait until next month, when we're to hand in our report,''
said state Rep. Charles Curtiss, D-Sparta, who was a sponsor of the
legislation authorizing quarantine of property.

The group, which has a deadline of Sept. 1 to complete its report,
asked Bredesen to suspend the normal rule-making process and allow
TDEC to arrive at a meth-tolerance standard ''as quickly as possible.''

According to the letter from the task force to the governor, the
decontamination standard should ''include clear measurements for
testing the air and surface quality within a property to determine if
it is safe for human use.''

The Task Force recommended that TDEC base its fast-tracked research on
''the experiences and standards of a minimum of three other states.''
In particular, Washington should be one of the states, the Task Force
suggested.

That state has enforced a contamination standard for about 10 years.
It allows 0.5 microgram of meth residue per cubic foot.

According to Jim Haynes, director of TDEC's Division of Superfund,
having a low contamination threshold is important.

''The acids and bases that are found at these sites are very
dangerous. They can give you severe burns. After they are removed, we
are dealing with residual substances in cleaning up the sites. The
risk is less with these residual areas, but it's still serious. You
wouldn't want to live in one of these properties for a long period of
time unless you were sure they had been cleaned up,'' Haynes said.

''We have properties that have been quarantined and there needs to be
a way to get those back in service,'' said Haynes, who noted that work
on the new cleanup standard would begin as soon as the governor
approves the abbreviated process.

''Having something like this is the only way to know that a property
has been cleaned and is safe to live in again.''

But the new rule is not likely to come cheap. Although TDEC will write
the rules, it will be up to property owners to pay for the cost of
decontaminating a home. That would involve hiring a certified
contractor and the work could cost several hundred to several thousand
dollars, depending on the size of the structure.