METH LABS LEAVE LANDLORDS WITH STEEP CLEANUP BILLS

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Apartment manager Hollie Jones is finding out firsthand
the cost of methamphetamine use in South Dakota.

She's paying $8,500 out of a reserve fund to clean up after a
methamphetamine lab was discovered in one of the apartments.

The tenant, Jeremy West, 25, had passed the apartment's credit and criminal
background checks but was arrested along with two others last week for
making meth.

"I just thought he was a dumb kid that needed a mom and needed someone to
mother him a little bit. It turns out he was probably spending most of his
money on dope," she said.

West's deposit was $300, and "he was behind on his rent, too," Jones said.

Methamphetamine is a toxic blend of chemicals that can include the common
decongestant pseudoephedrine, anhydrous ammonia and the wrappings of
lithium batteries. It's also known as crank, ice or crystal and is a
powerful stimulant that can be smoked, snorted, swallowed or injected.

Through May, at least 14 meth labs had been seized in South Dakota this year.

And though some new meth laws went into effect July 1, there still are no
standards on cleaning up after the visible chemicals have been removed.

One thing is sure: the cost of removing contaminated carpet, drapes,
toilets and other remnants lies solely with the property owner.

Jones said this is the first time she's had to pay for a meth lab cleanup.

"We want to get them in and get it cleaned up and be able to forget about
it," she of Santi-Kleen in Marion, a commercial exhaust system cleaning
business that now handles meth labs.

"It turned out we have the same equipment that you need to clean up
clandestine drug labs," said Santi-Kleen president Cindi Newcomb.

The apartment job in Sioux Falls will be the fifth meth lab the company has
cleaned up, she said.

Such projects usually cost $5,000 to $8,000, Newcomb said. Some places such
as mobile homes can be so contaminated that it makes more financial sense
to tear them down, she said.

"I'd sure like to see the business dry up and go away. We moved here to
South Dakota from Oregon 10 years ago because the meth problem was getting
bad and we didn't want to raise our kids there. And now the problem is bad
here," Newcomb said.

The Sioux Falls apartment lab is rare because most South Dakota labs are
found in rural areas, far away from people who can detect the stench of the
chemicals.

"Rural landlords are really the ones that need the education because they
own the property that is perfect for these drug manufacturers," Newcomb said.

Help is available on the Internet for landlords, tenants and people looking
to buy.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources developed guidelines
after researching the subject, said Rick Lancaster, an environmental
project scientist for DENR.

The extent of the risk depends on variables such as how long the home or
apartment was used as a lab and where the chemicals were stored, Lancaster
said. The guidelines also include suggestions for renters on how to make
sure they're not moving into a place that's still contaminated.

One of the new laws requires anyone selling a home in South Dakota to
disclose if the house ever was used to produce methamphetamine.

Another new law limits the sale of cold medicine that contains a chemical
used to make meth.

That law could help reduce the number of meth labs, but it's too early to
tell, said Special Agent Jason Piercy of the South Dakota Division of
Criminal Investigation.

By far most of the meth used in South Dakota comes from Mexico, which is
also where more potent - and popular - crystal meth is produced, he said.

"About the only time you get the old stuff is in a meth lab - somebody who
doesn't have easy access to a distribution network," Piercy said.

On the Net:

South Dakota DENR:
(http://www.state.sd.us/denr/denr.html)http://www.state.sd.us/denr/denr.html