FARMERS FIND SIGNS OF METH LABS

Dumpsites Uncovered In Fields During Harvest Season

Area farmers harvesting their fields are turning up more than just
near-record corn yields this year.

Deputy Terry Roderick of the Sangamon County Sheriff's Office said deputies
ran into the same problem last year when farmers took to the fields to
bring in their crops. In most instances, farmers are running across
dumpsites used to dispose of items involved in the manufacture of the
illegal drug as opposed to a full-blown active production lab.

Representatives of sheriff's departments in Morgan, Christian, and Logan
counties say they are seeing the same trend.

Items found dumped in fields include empty packages of Sudafed, an
over-the-counter medication used in the manufacture of methamphetamine, as
well as plastic soda containers that are used to store chemicals.

Roderick did not have exact figures of how many such calls deputies have
answered, but speculated that they have been getting a couple per week.

"A tell-tale sign for us is when you go through some of these fields that
have been cultivated, and you see plastic grocery bags that are chopped up.
Normally, that means somebody has been in there cooking (methamphetamine),"
Roderick said.

Methamphetamine, commonly called meth, is manufactured using items that can
easily be obtained at hardware stores and discount centers, and is a
growing problem in Illinois. The problem is mainly centered in the rural
areas of Illinois, outside of Chicago and the northeastern portion of the
state.

Information from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
indicates that law officers seized 435 methamphetamine labs in Illinois in
2002, and 80 percent were in rural counties.

In 1998, methamphetamine accounted for about 12 percent of the drugs that
were submitted to state crime labs from rural areas. By 2002,
methamphetamine accounted for more than 43 percent of drug submissions to
state labs under the Controlled Substance Act, which excludes marijuana,
the information authority said.

Methamphetamine users face a battery of health hazards such as potentially
fatal kidney and lung disorders, and the manufacturing process can produce
explosions.

While the items found in local fields this harvest season have not caused
serious problems, one item found in Sangamon County did have the potential
to damage farm machinery. The item, a 5-gallon metal tank, was spotted by a
farmer before he ran it over with his combine.

"I asked the farmer what would have happened if his combine would have hit
(the steel container). He said it would have shut him down. When you have a
stainless steel or aluminum tank going into your combine, it's going to
cause some serious damage," Roderick said.

The metal tank in question originally was used as part of a soft drink
dispenser but apparently was being used to store anhydrous ammonia, a farm
fertilizer used in the production of methamphetamine.

Anhydrous ammonia has become a popular target of thieves looking for
methamphetamine ingredients. Farmers are cautioned to secure their tanks
with locks and to also keep the tanks in a well-lit area.

Sangamon County deputies handled similar calls last year during harvest
season. For deputies in Christian County, this is a new trend.

"We've been dealing with (methamphetamine) for several years, but I don't
remember having incidents during harvest season last year," Christian
County Sheriff Bob Kindermann said.

Kindermann estimated that since harvest began, farmers have reported
finding evidence of methamphetamine labs about three to five times.

Logan County Sheriff Steve Nichols said so far, the field sites discovered
in his county have been dumpsites as opposed to active labs.

Nichols, Kindermann and Roderick all agreed that when farmers take to the
fields next year, they would continue to find evidence of methamphetamine labs.

"The (methamphetamine) problem isn't going away anytime soon," Roderick said.