Pubdate: Thu, 11 Aug 2005
Source: Daily Gate City (IA)
Copyright: 2005 Daily Gate City
Contact:  http://www.dailygate.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1530
Author: Gerry Baksys, MVM News Network
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

ANHYDROUS AMMONIA LOCKS DISTRIBUTED IN LEE COUNTY

There is no silver bullet to fighting Iowa's growing methamphetamine 
epidemic, but a state agency thinks it might have a lock on the problem.

According to the director of the Governor's Office on Drug Control Policy, 
Marvin Van Haaften, a new anhydrous ammonia tank-lock program has slowed 
the growth of methamphetamine production.

The locks that will help solve the theft of an ingredient used in the meth 
process were invented by Dave Christianson of the Tanks-A-Lok, Humboldt.

"We did a survey of police chiefs and county sheriff's awhile back," Van 
Haaften said, "and what was interesting, 90 percent said you got to do 
something to control the precursors. So we took that to heart. We actually 
went through Sen. (Tom) Harkin's (D-Iowa) office and we found that we could 
get a federal grant. We applied in 2002 and received funds and locks in 2003."

The locks, according to Van Haaften, are relatively cheap to buy at $45 
each, made in Iowa, are entirely funded by federal grants and are 
distributed locally through county sheriffs' offices.

Van Haaften said the locks have proven to be effective. Distributed to 26 
counties in central and south central Iowa in 2003, the results have been 
tremendous.

"We did a survey last year of the 26 counties about the amount of ammonia 
stolen (since the locks were installed)," Van Haaften said. "We heard from 
the sheriffs that thefts ended immediately. Thefts went from three to four 
a week to zero. So we knew we were having an effect."

According to the ODCP, the counties with locks saw a 5 percent decrease in 
the number of new methamphetamine labs seized in 2004. All other counties 
in the state had an average 112 percent increase.

"The success, and thus the necessity of this program speaks for itself," 
Harkin said in a statement. "We have a serious problem in Iowa when it 
comes to meth, and we have to use all the tools at our disposal to address 
it. While the Tanks-A-Lok program is not a silver bullet, it is a vital 
part or strategy to win this fight against meth."

But the tanks are not the be-all, end-all to Iowa's methamphetamine 
problem. Currently, only 26 of Iowa's 99 counties have locks. And while 
another 47 counties are scheduled to be included in the program in the 
coming months, including Lee County, they do not have their locks yet.

Additionally, Van Haaften said some meth cookers are beginning to use red 
phosphorous instead of anhydrous ammonia in the production process. Those 
numbers, however, are relatively low. Of the 1,472 methamphetamine labs 
seized in the state of Iowa in 2004, only 40 used red phosphorous, as 
indicated by the office of drug control.

Even if the locks were distributed to all 99 Iowa counties, they alone 
would not stop the production of methamphetamine in the state.

"We know the locks are working," Van Haaften said, "because we caught a guy 
in Marion County who told us that he bought a 100-gallon tank and drove to 
a farming co-op in Missouri. That is good evidence again that locking up 
the tanks was driving the crooks out of the state."

According to Van Haaften, the ODCP received a $200,000 federal grant in 
2003 and a $300,000 grant in 2005 to purchase locks for the program. (The 
ODCP has also applied for another $300,000 grant for 2006.)

The ODCP then asked the county sheriff's offices around the state to 
identify the anhydrous ammonia tank owners in their county and to ask them 
to participate in the program.

Those that are willing (Van Haaften said that only two "grumpy old guys" 
have declined to participate in the program) have the locks installed on 
their tanks by C & K Manufacturing Inc., a company in Hardy that makes the 
locks.

Lee County Sheriff's Deputy Stacy Weber said local interest in the program 
has been great, and no "grumpy old guys" have declined to participate.

"Basically," Weber said, "I got a hold of all of the anhydrous ammonia 
tanks dealers in the area and got the number of tanks. They were all 
interested in the locks. They were getting tired of the anhydrous thefts. 
We secured almost 300 locks for every tank in the county."

According to Weber, the locks are a step in the right direction in helping 
curb the epidemic.

"My estimate would be low," Weber said, "but I would guess there is some 
(anhydrous) stolen every night. From what I've heard from dealers, farmers 
are looking forward to having some sort of security on the tanks. It's 
impossible for us to guard every tank in the field. With these locks, 
they'll be able to secure it."

Van Haaften said the program is achieving positive results.

"We are the first state in America to do something like this," Van Haaften 
said. "If you just take the 5 percent (decrease) that participating 
counties saw and increase (meth production) in those counties as much as 
counties without the locks did, you are talking over 2,000 more labs. That 
means we have 200 to 300 more kids not getting second-hand exposure. Plus 
when you have fewer meth labs, you free up law enforcement to do other 
things that they are required to do."

Like fighting other ways that drugs get into the state, Weber said.

"We're at a point now," Weber said, "where we're at a high point of (meth) 
manufacturing arrests. Hopefully, there will be a slowdown with these locks 
so we can concentrate on "pipeline dope," marijuana, crack and 
methamphetamine, that comes here from other places. Currently, 95 percent 
of our day is methamphetamine. If the locks work, we could take care of 
some of these other people."

Lee County is scheduled to get the locks in the next two months.
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MAP posted-by: Beth