Tennessee sees little decrease in meth labs

Monday, November 19, 2012

KNOXVILLE - Tennessee has about the same number of methamphetamine labs as it did two years ago, despite new laws and a new system for tracking the drug's main ingredient, pseudoephedrine.

The Knoxville News Sentinel reports authorities expect the statewide total to reach nearly 1,800 busts for the year.

State law limits consumers to about three boxes of pseudoephedrine per month. But that doesn't stop meth cooks from recruiting other people to buy it, often using fake IDs.

Police have reported finding buyers with 75 or more fake IDs.

Police are proud of one success story, however. Since the loss of federal funding for lab removal, they have trained local officers to dispose of lab waste, cutting the cost by half or better.