HAMDON LEADS CHARGE AGAINST METH

Drayton Valley Western Review -- Mayor Moe Hamdon is spearheading a
nationwide proposal that would see the federal government make it illegal
to possess large quantities of chemicals that go into the drug known as
crystal meth.

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities sent the resolution to the
government of Canada that outlined some areas in need of federal
legislation so municipalities could have effective tools to fight the drug
problem.

"Meth is the drug of choice in Drayton Valley and is very difficult for us
to keep on top of," said Hamdon. "We need clear legislation that can give
us something to work with."

He says that in order to adequately control distribution and prosecute
offenders the legislation must include the ability to criminally prosecute
those suspected of manufacturing the drug.

There needs to be a classification system for all chemicals, pure or
rendered from legitimate product, required to make methamphetamine (known
as Class A Precursors). Then, the government should have some way to
monitor those classified chemicals, says Hamdon. Stricter regulations and
an administrative system would create an environment that would make it
easier for monitoring agencies to track and determine the legitimacy of
precursor chemicals.

"It's frustrating for police when they go into a meth lab and there isn't
any meth there but there is large amounts of chemicals used to make meth
and they can't do anything because it's not illegal to possess the
chemicals," said Hamdon. "We need to give them (police) the tools to be
able to do something and be able to bust people for having chemicals."

Hamdon says if the penalty and consequences of creating a meth lab were
increased, people would think twice about starting one up. "One of the
reasons it's the drug of choice is because it's cheap. If we decrease the
amount of places people can get meth and increase the costs maybe they will
think twice," said Hamdon.

Word came from the U.S. about 10 years ago to warn the Canadian government
the drug could be entering the country and would have devastating effects.
The U.S. does have laws in place to regulate the sale of pseudophedrin,
acetone, red phosphorus and hydriodic acid - all chemicals used to produce
methamphetamines.

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities warns that Canadian
municipalities are becoming prime shopping territory for American meth
producers looking for chemicals because they are not restricted in Canada.

In 2000 Canada imported more than 500,000 kilograms of pseudophedrine, a
major ingredient in methamphetamine, a 500 per cent increase from the year
before.

The work for the proposal started two or three years ago when it was first
realized that meth was the drug of choice, says Hamdon. "We're just
building our case now. We've got the research done and the desire to have
the legislation is there, we're just strengthening our case with the feds,"
said Hamdon. "We need to put the weight of all municipalities behind us and
need the support of all the communities. The best defence is an educated
community."

The meth problem blew up in Drayton Valley about two years ago when the
drug started trickling in from B.C., said Kevin Fisher, counsellor
supervisor for the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission in Drayton Valley.

Fisher says the drug is appealing to users because instead of partying hard
for one night, they can party hard for several days in a row. It's also
appealing because people in town work long hard hours and use the extra
stimulant to increase performance, said Fisher.