METH LAB CLEANUP: California adopted a law in 2006 regulating the cleanup of residual contamination from meth labs.
Property owners are responsible for hiring a contractor to develop a cleanup plan. Local health authorities must oversee the work.
REMEDIATION:
In cases of extreme contamination, a house will be demolished. Most situations will require some or all of the following measures:
1. REMOVAL
2. WASHING
3. SEALING
Carpets, drapes, fabrics and drywall — anything that absorbs — typically need to be removed and disposed of. They can absorb vapors and collect dust and powder from chemicals.
Non-porous or semiporous surfaces such as floors, counters, tiles, walls and ceilings are typically cleaned with a detergent-water solution.
For heavily contaminated surfaces that can’t be removed, one option after washing is to paint the surface with an oil-based paint or epoxy to create a barrier and prevent the outgassing of contaminants. Common places for meth labs are bathrooms, kitchens and garages.
Drywall is removed. Ventilation may reduce contamination and decrease odors.
Meth lab area
Contents of the house are removed and placed in a bin for landfill disposal. Steam cleaning and an acid wash is an option for cleaning concrete floors.
Staging area
The heating, ventilation and air-cooling system is cleaned and filters are replaced at the end of the remediation process.
COOKING METH: Meth can be made in small stovetop labs that produce only a few ounces and can fit in a box, or in "super labs" that produce hundreds of pounds.
Smaller labs usually consist of small glassware, baking dishes, 1-gallon containers and coffee filters. Larger labs consist of 22-liter reaction vessels, large flasks, heating mantles and 55-gallon drums. Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, ingredients in over-the-counter cold and asthma medications, are key to making meth. One way to extract them is using solvents and heat. Once extracted, they're combined with chemicals, such as red phosphorus, and heated. The cooked material is mixed with other ingredients, such as sodium hydroxide and Freon. The liquid meth is drained and treated with hydrochloride gas. Meth crystallizes and falls to the bottom. The finished meth is dried. The operation and many of the ingredients are extremely dangerous and can cause serious injury or death, not only to the cooks but also to others nearby.
Blender
Bucket
Used to grind up tablets into a powder
Filled with cat litter, which absorbs reaction gases
3
8
1 10
2 9
7
4
Glass flask Heated to cook the meth
12
11
6 13
5
Meth elements
14
Chemicals found in lab
Legitimate uses
Health hazards
1. Acetone
Fingernail polish remover, solvents
Reproductive disorders
2. Methanol
Brake cleaner fluid, fuel
Blindness, eye damage
3. Ammonia
Disinfectants
Blistering, lung damage
4. Ether
Starters fluid, anesthetic
Reproductive disorders
5. Freon
Refrigerant, propellants
Frostbite, lung damage
6. Hydriodic acid
Driveway cleaner
Burns, thyroid damage
7. Lithium metal
Lithium batteries
Burns, fluid in lungs
8. Muriatic acid
Swimming pool cleaners
Burns, toxic vapors
9. Pseudoephedrine
Cold medicines
Heart damage
10. Red phosphorus
Matches, road flares
Unstable, flammable
11. Sodium hydroxide
Drain cleaners, lye
Burns, skin ulcers
12. Sulfuric acid
Battery acid
Burns, thyroid damage
13. Toluene
Paint thinners, solvents
Fetal damage, pneumonia
14. Liquid lab waste
None
Unknown long-term effects
SOURCES: RIVERSIDE COUNTY DRUG ENDANGERED CHILDREN PROGRAM; SGT. KEITH PROCTOR, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPT.; DOUBLE BARREL ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES RESEACH BY DOUGLAS QUAN; GRAPHIC BY BECKY HAGEMAN, ALBERT CORONA, CHRIS RAMOS/THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE
