The fear on meth: Local lab output

When 12 pounds of crystal methamphetamine arrived in Seabrook on Oct. 24 , officials say, federal Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Seabrook police officers were ready. They arrested four men and seized the drugs, which had an estimated $1.5 million street value -- the largest amount ever seized in New England .

While the bust was significant, local law enforcement officials are more concerned about the possibility that methamphetamine labs will proliferate in New Hampshire as they have in other parts of the country. The crystal meth they seized locally was manufactured in a lab in Mexico.

Anthony Pettigrew , a spokesman for the DEA's New England division, said last week that law enforcement officials dismantled six meth laboratories in New Hampshire in 2005 and five this year.

"But most of it is mailed in," Pettigrew said. "There has been a continued growth in availability of methamphetamine in the state in the past few years, particularly in and around the Seacoast area, but not in large amounts."

Law enforcement officials are doing their best to make sure it's a problem that stays small. All of them agree the drug wreaks havoc with the user ' s body, not to mention the environment. The highly addictive stimulant can be made cheaply using household products and over-the-counter medications. Most methods involve the use of flammable or corrosive chemicals.

Linda Tomlinson , a spokesman for the US attorney's office, said making a pound of methamphetamine produces about 7 pounds of hazardous waste. It costs about $20,000 to clean up the site of a lab, she said. "Meth ravages people and it ravages the environment," she said. "In many ways, it's worse than heroin."

When President Bush proclaimed Nov. 30 National Methamphetamine Awareness Day, he called it "a powerfully addictive drug that dramatically affects users' minds and bodies," and poses a danger wherever it is present.

New Hampshire recognized that proclamation by holding a panel discussion Nov. 30 at the New Hampshire Community Technical College that featured state Health and Human Services Commissioner John Stephen , US Attorney for New Hampshire Thomas Colantuono, and other officials.

"We're doing everything possible to get a foothold on meth before it becomes a problem," Colantuono said last week. "It is coming to New England and it's devastating to families, children and the environment, and we want to get out ahead of the curve."

Last August, the US attorney's office, the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, and the state attorney general's office formed a task force to prepare for the inevitable arrival of methamphetamine in the state.

Since then, more than 400 police officers and first responders have been trained to be on the lookout for the drug.

"We want to get out the word," Tomlinson said.

Seabrook Police Chief David Currier was among those who participated in the training.

"Methamphetamine is a big problem out West and New England is the last outpost," he said. "Arrests for the drug are extremely rare, but we want to be ready."

Arrests have been rare in Portsmouth, too.

"We haven't seen it in any magnitude yet, just people bringing it into the area," Steve Arnold , a detective in the Portsmouth Police Department's special investigations unit, said last week.

But Arnold said he is trying to be proactive and has been visiting local businesses to warn workers that funnels, buckets, and other equipment can be used to manufacture the drug.

"And if we find somebody is using the drug in Portsmouth , we don't set up a sting; we just go right out and grab them. We don't want to waste any time.

"I know the drug is coming and it's coming soon," he said, "and I'm not looking forward to it."