 |
|
Instances
of methamphetamine trafficking and abuse in the
United States are on the increase. As a result,
this drug is having a devastating impact on communities
across the nation.
Clandestine production accounts for nearly all
of the methamphetamine trafficked and abused in
the United States. Domestic methamphetamine production,
trafficking, and abuse are concentrated in the
western, southwestern, and Midwestern United States.
Methamphetamine is also increasingly available
in portions of the South and eastern United States,
especially Georgia and Florida. Clandestine laboratories
in California and Mexico are the primary sources
of supply for methamphetamine available in the
United States.
Methamphetamine is clandestinely manufactured
using the ephedrine or pseudoephedrine reduction
method. In this process, over-the-counter cold
and allergy tablets containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine
are placed in a solution of water, alcohol, or
other solvent for several hours until the ephedrine
or pseudoephedrine separates from the tablet.
Then, using common household products and equipment
listed on the following page and a recipe learned
from friends or taken off the Internet, the ephedrine
or pseudoephedrine is converted into high quality
Methamphetamine in makeshift, illegal labs by
untrained individuals.
|
|
|
|
From 1975 to 2001, DEA seized 16,054 illegal drug
laboratories, of which 13,931 were used to produce
methamphetamine. Of the 1490 illegal drug laboratories
seized by DEA in 2001, 1445 were methamphetamine
labs.
Source: ONDCP Drug Data
Summary, January 2003
The growing use of
the Internet, which provides access to methamphetamine
"recipes," coupled with increased demand
for high-purity product, has resulted in a dramatic
increase in the number of mom-and-pop laboratories
throughout the United States. In 2001, the number
of labs with capacities under ten pounds totaled
over 7,700.
Source: DEA, "Drug
Trafficking in the United States"
|
 |
|
|
|
