The methamphetamine epidemic is the most serious drug problem that America faces today. Meth, as it is commonly referred to, has been running rampid through America like an uncontrollable cyclone, destroying everything that hinders its path. It has stirred up such a ruckus that it was brought to the attention of congress recently and a bill was proposed specifically to fight against methamphetamines. Everyday more and more people begin to use and more and more become addicted to methamphetamines. Everyone is using; from housewives to teens and, believe it or not, even some pre-teens. Meth is nothing to be taken lightly it is destroying millions of people's lives in our society every year and if a plan is not implemented it could eventually destroy our society as we know it.

Last year approximately 18 thousand methamphetamine labs and dump sites were seized across America, which is an extremely high number considering the number of methamphetamine labs that were busted in 1995, which was only 327. These sites were said to be relatively smaller labs that were only capable of cooking up somewhere around ten pounds of methamphetamines per cycle. These kinds of labs have become very popular throughout the country, while the number of "super labs," which have the power of mass production, are slowly declining. Small labs are often discovered in people's homes when law enforcement officers are responding to domestic calls.

The clean-up of methamphetamine labs can also run a pretty penny. The Drug Enforcement Agency manages a 20 million dollar program that covers the cost of the initial site clean up, consisting of gathering evidence and chemical removal. The rest of the clean up operation can range anywhere from $3,000 to $8,000. The clean up of these labs, no matter what size, are also capable of shutting down the entire neighborhood in which it was being operated in because of the chemical clean up. A lab that produced mass quantities of methamphetamines was uncovered in Livermore, California, an area where there are many farms and ranches. The lab had a pit that was used to dispose of toxic waste from the production cycle and because of this Alameda County health officials were made to test the water supply for an entire year after the meth labs closure. They were forced to do this to make sure that not of the material had leaked into the groundwater supply.

Discovered in Japan, by a Japenese scientist in the 80's, methamphetamines derived

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