How & Where Meth Is Manufactured

Naturally, the first regions to be affected by a switch from domestic production of meth to imported meth are "hot spots" and border states. Let's take a quick look at some:

Missouri is a meth distribution "hot-spot" due to its central geographic location in the U.S. Missouri passed their law limiting the sale of cold medications containing pseudoephedrine in July of 2005. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, between July 2005 and January 2006, meth lab busts fell 44% compared to the same period one year earlier. Soon after however, authorities noticed a huge increase in the amount of "crystal" meth seized (more potent and potentially more addictive than powder.) So the domestic powder meth wasn't just replaced by foreign-manufactured powder methamphetamine, it was replaced by foreign manufactured crystal methamphetamine.

Missouri has led the U.S. in meth lab seizures every year since 2001, and 2007 was no exception: 1,189 labs were seized in 2007, ( according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.)

In El Paso, Texas, which is the second biggest of the four border cities with Mexico, the amount of crystal meth seized from 2002 to 2005 increased almost 480%. Again, part of this increase is attributed to more border agents focusing on meth, but most of it is attributable to the simple laws of supply and demand. During the "hey-day" of the mom and pop meth labs, confiscating six grams of meth was considered a good bust. Now officials say that it's not uncommon to seize up to six pounds at a time of more potent and more addictive crystal meth. Small meth lab seizures have gone way back up in the latter part of 2007 and the first half of 2008.

In addition to being a central "hub" of meth distribution, Atlanta also has the distinction of being the first place where crystal meth was seized that tested at 100% pure. Even when they are producing meth locally within Atlanta, you're talking about large-scale operations. Where regular domestic labs would be using coffee filters to filter out their meth, in Atlanta they've come across labs where entire bed sheets or screen doors were being used as filters. Georgia has also recorded some of the largest domestic seizures of meth in North American history.

Again, all data we've collected thus far in 2008 shows that Georgia is still a meth hot-spot for both imported meth, and low-level labs.

There are a variety of other hot-spots for meth in North America, including Montana, Colorado (particularly Denver), Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, & Utah. In Canada, meth hot-spots include British Columbia, Alberta, and certain sections of Ontario. Perth County in Ontario has been particularly hard hit by methamphetamine. In April of 2008, authorities in Toronto, Ontario recorded what may be the largest ecstasy/crystal meth bust in Toronto's history. And as Jim Stephens, our Chief Information Officer at All Poditive Options commented in the Toronto Sun newspaper, Toronto really dodged a bullet by stumbling upon this lab, because it was a meth superlab. And that means had that lab exploded, it probably would have taken out half a city block.,

So to those regions that already have, or are in the process of enacting various types of legislation for precursor restriction over and above Federal law, brace yourself for new problems stemming from new sources to feed the meth demand. We sincerely hope that no one is under the impression that shutting down local production is going to make your meth problem go away entirely, because it's not. That's just the nature of drug "supply-reduction strategies." They don't solve the problem, they cause the problem to adapt. And here's how:

First of all, there are usually increases in theft and robbery rates because the addicts no longer have an easy, home-made source of supply and require more money to get what they need. Secondly, in most cases, the number of cocaine busts will go up, because the local price of cocaine (especially crack cocaine) will have dropped to absorb the new user base that was previously using domestically produced meth. In addition, law enforcement will have more time to focus on activities other than investigating and shutting down small meth labs. Resultantly, more seizures of other drugs takes place as a natural consequence of their shift in attention and resources.

Thirdly, (and this takes about a month or two) almost in direct proportion to the access restrictions placed on precursor chemicals (ie: pseudoephedrine, anhydrous ammonia,) you will experience a rise in the amount of imported crystal meth seized on the streets. Purity will go up, but not always quantities because you're usually dealing with a purer form of meth now. Meth busts will still involve a lot of gram amounts, but when a significant dealer is busted (which is rare) you'll usually see much larger quantities.

Fourth, look for meth cooks to begin using the "one pot" method of making meth. As we stated earlier, the one pot method reduces production time by 75-90% and is so simplistic, it can be perfromed anywhere - even in a moving vehicle.

Finally, there will be a less admissions to ER's and burn units stemming from meth labs because quite simply, there will fewer and fewer meth labs. Typically, this will also translate to a temporary increase in the number of treatment admissions for meth but this also impacts the number of children requiring short-term foster care.

Next, let's look at types of meth and we'll tell you right now, the only type you'll be seeing in huge quantities from now on is pure crystal meth or "Ice", and we firmly believe that will be a national phenomenon in both the U.S. and Canada and ultimately, around the globe. The methods have become more refined, the producers are more organized, and the networks span the globe.