Pubdate: Wed, 08 Feb 2012
Source: Alberni Valley Times (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Alberni Valley Times
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouverisland/albernivalleytimes/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4043

DOUBT CAST ON CANADA AS 'HOT BED' OF ECSTASY, METH PRODUCTION

Canada may not be the hotbed of ecstasy and meth production as some 
reports have suggested, according to new research.

In 2009, a widely publicized United Nations World Drug Report said 
Canada had become a leading producer and exporter of synthetic party 
drugs, prompting some media outlets to dub Canada "Colombia North."

But a study completed for Public Safety Canada last year, and 
released under access-to-information legislation, says the assertion 
is supported by little data.

"The publication of the 2009 World Drug Report created a media frenzy 
of the wrong kind for Canada as it has been identified as one of the 
world's lead producers of amphetamine-type stimulants," the study 
said. "Yet the proposition that Canada is a primary ATS 
(amphetamine-type stimulants) producer and exporter may be premature."

The findings come at a time when police and public health officials 
are grappling with a spate of deaths in Western Canada related to the 
use of ecstasy, also known as MDMA.

Since July, there have been 10 ecstasy-related deaths in Alberta. 
Nine of the cases have been linked to ecstasy that was tainted with 
PMMA, dubbed by some drug experts as meth's "ugly cousin."

In British Columbia, there have been 19 ecstasy-related deaths since 
August, with five linked to PMMA.

The 2009 UN drug report noted that two years earlier, a relatively 
large amount of methamphetamine (1.54 metric tonnes) and ecstasy (985 
kilograms) had been seized in Canada, putting it among the leading 
nations in the world.

The report stated that Canada had become the "most important producer 
of MDMA for North America" and that since 2006 all uncovered ecstasy 
labs in Canada had been "large capacity facilities operated 
principally by Asian organized crime groups."

The report also noted that a majority of the meth and ecstasy seized 
in Australia and Japan had been traced back to Canada.

But the Public Safety Canada study says there is still "too much 
uncertainty" in the data to know Canada's true role in the global 
synthetic drug trade, and it notes the annual amount of meth seized 
in Canada has been as low as 60 kilograms.

The study suggests Canada may contribute as little as 0.6% or as high 
as 4.6% of the world's supply of amphetamine-type stimulants.

Based on those numbers, "Canada would not be considered as a major 
producer in the global ATS market under most standards," the study said.

Like marijuana, meth and ecstasy can be produced virtually anywhere 
in the world and "Canada is no more and no less of a global player 
today than it was five years ago," the study concluded.

Lead author Martin Bouchard, a criminology professor at B.C.'S Simon 
Fraser University, said in an interview Canada is more likely among 
the Top 15-producing countries, as opposed to the Top 3.

Cpl. Luc Chicoine, an RCMP synthetic drug expert in Ottawa, 
acknowledged Tuesday that it is difficult to know how Canada stacks 
up against other drug-producing countries.

But he said it is clear that the supply is "way too big" for Canadian 
demand, meaning a lot of drugs is being exported to countries, 
including the U.S., Australia and Japan.

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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom