Pubdate: Tue, 17 Aug 2004
Source: Augusta Chronicle, The (GA)
Copyright: 2004 The Augusta Chronicle
Contact:  http://www.augustachronicle.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/31
Author: Brandon Larrabee, Morris News Service
Note: Does not publishing letters from outside of the immediate area
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

OFFICIALS DISCUSS METH PROBLEMS

Agencies Build Connections To Fight Growing Drug Use

ATLANTA - Warning that the deadly drug is tightening its grip on rural
Georgia, Gov. Sonny Perdue opened a two-day summit seeking solutions to the
state's growing methamphetamine production and abuse problem.

Law enforcement, lawmakers and those involved in drug treatment
gathered at the Omni Hotel to begin brainstorming ideas on how to deal
with the threat. After spending the afternoon in statewide groups
according to their profession, attendees planned to break up into
geographical groups today.

In a session with reporters shortly before the Tuesday session began,
Mr. Perdue said the purpose of the gathering was to help build
connections between the various agencies fighting meth's growth.

"We hope to learn to coordinate how we can stem the tidal wave that's
rolling across our state on methamphetamine," he said.

"We have to change history ... in the next two days," said Sherri
Strange, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's special agent in charge of
the Atlanta field division.

In remarks opening the summit, Mr. Perdue described how meth use in
Georgia has skyrocketed in recent years and highlighted his
administration and the Legislature's efforts to fight the drug's
spread. But, the governor said, more needs to be done.

"Very simply, the rise in manufacturing and abuse of methamphetamine
in our state over the last few years poses a serious threat to Georgia
families and Georgia communities," he said.

The governor outlined the damage meth inflicts on its addicts,
including psychotic thoughts and damage to vital organs, and the
safety risks associated with the drug. Meth labs often produce
dangerous fumes and can be volatile, triggering explosions or fire.

Mr. Perdue said law enforcement agencies were projected to make as
many as 2,000 meth seizures in rural areas of the state this year - up
from 854 only four years ago.

"It touches all corners of our state," Mr. Perdue said. "It is
especially corrosive in some of our smallest and poorest communities.
. (Rural law enforcement will) tell you that methamphetamine is the
fastest-growing and most dangerous drug problem in small-town and
rural Georgia."

The growth of meth use in Georgia is part of a national trend, as a
substance that got its start in California has spread across the
nation at a rapid pace. Almost every state in the country, save a
handful in the Northeast, had 20 or more meth labs seized in 2003.

"We know what's been happening in California, and we know what's been
happening in the Midwest, and the last thing I want to see is another
Sherman marching through Georgia," said Becky Vaughn, the president of
the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse. She urged an emphasis on
treatment as much as enforcement.

One of the reasons the spread of meth is so difficult to beat back,
officials say, is because it is incredibly easy to produce.
Instructions are available on the Internet; a kitchen or even a hotel
room can serve as a "lab"; and one of the main ingredients needed to
produce the drug is ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, often found in cold
medicines.

That has prompted most states to set limits on the amount of ephedrine
someone can possess, with Oklahoma recently passing one of the most
restrictive laws in the country.

Mr. Perdue said he wouldn't dismiss the idea that legislation for next
year's General Assembly might be triggered by the summit, but the
governor said that wasn't the purpose of the meeting.

"I don't want to make this the cause du jour of the legislative
session," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin