CUTBACKS FORCE RETREAT IN WAR ON METH, WITH
TWO-THIRDS FEWER LABS SEIZED IN ALABAMA

ST. LOUIS =AD Police and sheriff's departments in
states that produce much of the nation's
methamphetamine have made a sudden retreat in the
war on meth, at times virtually abandoning
pursuit of the drug because they can no longer
afford to clean up the toxic waste generated by labs.

Despite abundant evidence that the meth trade is
flourishing, many law enforcement agencies have
called off tactics that have been used for years to confront drug makers.

The steep cutbacks began after the federal
government in February canceled a program that
provided millions of dollars to help local
agencies dispose of seized labs. Since then, an
Associated Press analysis shows, the number of
labs seized has plummeted by a third in some key
meth-producing states and two-thirds in at least one, Alabama.