METH WASTE DUMPED

Apparatus Used To Make Crystal Meth

Products used to produce crystal meth were found by a local worker in
a Bridgeport industrial park dumpster Tuesday.

Police and firefighters were called to the Bridgeport Road site just
west of Shell Road after bags containing acetone and toluene
containers, tubes, buckets and plastic gloves were found in a
dumpster that had been broken into.

According to Richmond RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Nycki Basra, "It is the
combination of the materials that were there -- empty chemical
containers -- and the fact that they are put in a private dumpster
where the lock is pried off that would lead us to believe there's
something illegal."

Basra said local police have noted "a substantial increase both in
the number of labs and dump sites for meth labs in the last couple of years."

But Basra also said the garbage, which was removed by a hazardous
materials team, might not have been from Richmond. "It could be from anywhere."

Still, she said "Anyone who was using them legitimately would know
how to dispose of them and not pry into a private dumpster."

A similar find in early June in Surrey's Whalley neighbourhood caused
the evacuation of four homes and a construction site. In February,
meth lab products were also found near an elementary school in
Surrey. And in late April, North Vancouver RCMP found weapons and 270
kilograms of crystal meth production chemicals.

An Aug. 8 police news release on the Richmond site noted: "The
employee who handled the garbage is very lucky that there were not
active ingredients as the garbage was mostly apparatus and empty containers."

"Inhalation of chemicals can obviously cause health problems," Basra
said, and noted that meth lab production products are "very
combustible and flammable and some can cause skin irritation."

Richmond RCMP have dealt with "several" meth lab dump sites this
year, according to Basra.

The detachment's five-officer drug section investigated throughout
Tuesday night and into Wednesday. No arrests had been made at press time.

Richmond RCMP also warn residents and local workers to call police if
they find suspicious garbage that has a chemical-like smell.

"The dump sites most common are abandoned properties and anywhere a
dumpster is insecure, or (around) new condo buildings," Basra said.
"Meth labs are fairly portable and fairly easy to set up and they
don't involve a lot of work."