Pubdate: Mon, 07 Nov 2005
Source: Albany Democrat-Herald (OR)
Copyright: 2005 Lee Enterprises
Contact: http://www.mvonline.com/support/contact/DHedletters.php
Website: http://www.democratherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/7
Author: Cathy Ingalls

CONTAMINATED BY METH: FAMILY CAN'T LIVE IN HOME

Ann Heward can only drive by her family home on Marion Street in 
Albany. She can't walk on the grass, prune a bush, retrieve a car in 
the driveway or move any of her possessions out of the house.

That's because on Sept. 30, one of her sons was arrested for cooking 
methamphetamine on the property for a third time. For breaking the 
law, Kyle John Heward, 34, was sentenced to more than four years in prison.

Kyle got a prison term, and because of what he did his mother and a 
brother, Scott, are banned from their property at 2415 Marion St. 
until they can raise $4,000 to pay a professional cleaning service to 
eliminate the methamphetamine residue from every cranny of the home 
and every corner of a small shed on the site.

Scott and his mother are negotiating with Suzanne Keirnes-Smith of 
Eugene to do the decontamination. Scott, who works at the VFW, said 
he contacted a number of mid-valley firms but settled on 
Keirnes-Smith because she "works fairly cheaply, and she accepts 
installment payments."

Ann, manager of a cash store in Corvallis, who now is raising Kyle's 
two children, had rented the house to Kyle and his family while she 
and Scott lived elsewhere. Ann wants to get the house decontaminated 
as soon as possible because she plans to retire to the property she 
bought in 1991 after her husband died.

Unfortunately, people such as Ann and Scott become unwilling victims 
when family members use and cook methamphetamine in a home, said 
Charles McConnell of American Decontamination Specialists in 
Philomath. McConnell's company cleans sites that contained meth labs.

"Oftentimes these places are populated by kids who have come home for 
whatever reason and they end up using or making meth in their 
parents' or grandparents' houses," he said. "Economically, their 
behavior puts their parents and grandparents at great risk because of 
the expensive burden of cleanup. Insurance doesn't generally pay for a cleanup.

"Often the affected family members are older and retired and do not 
have the money to move elsewhere while the cleanup is going on or to 
buy another place altogether," McConnell said.

Because of the cost of decontamination, which can go as high as 
$15,000 in some cases, some renters and property owners continue to 
live in a drug house despite the possibility of developing health 
problems, said Loren Garner.

He is an environmental health specialist with the state Department of 
Human Services Drug Lab Cleanup Program in Portland. He maintains a 
Web site that lists, along with other information, properties in 
every county in Oregon awaiting a meth cleanup.

Much of the cost is associated with removing large amounts of 
chemical waste that accumulates with meth production. One pound of 
meth can create five to seven pounds of waste, Garner said. That 
waste is often piled in and around a meth location.

To prevent the contamination of cleanup crews, workers wear Tyvek 
suits and half-face respirators, said Donna Kroese of Kroese 
Contracting of Lebanon.

Her state-licensed firm cleans up meth sites around the state.

Because the workers are so well protected, they haul out everything, 
unbagged, from a house and put it in a secure trailer.

The debris is taken to a landfill for disposal. Landfills do not take 
extra precautions with the material because the chemicals in the 
debris eventually break down, she said.

According to information at the state Web site, special precautions 
must be taken by cleanup workers during a decontamination because 
health problems can arise from exposure to the chemicals.

The chemicals involved with producing meth include solvents, metals, 
salts and strong acids.

The chemical residue and remaining vapors from production can produce 
tears and inflame the cornea. Inhalation can result in irritation to 
the nose and throat, cause a shortness of breath, and cause bleeding 
and fluid to appear in the lungs.

Other symptoms from exposure can include headache, nausea, dizziness, 
lack of coordination, loss of consciousness, and damage to the liver 
and kidneys.

Direct contact with corrosives can cause severe eye and skin burns.

Chemicals that are solid present little inhalation risk unless 
environmental factors, such as air movement, fire, or explosion, 
release them in the air as dust or vapors.

Solid substances in the form of fine powders are easily inhaled.
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MAP posted-by: Beth