Protocols have been developed to co-ordinate the training and response of emergency services to the dangerous conditions and toxic environment posed by clandestine drug labs and to restore the safety of the communities where these labs are located.
A clandestine drug laboratory, or "clan lab", is an illicit chemical lab designed for the purpose of secretly making illegal drugs, including indoor marihuana grow-ops.
An OPP press release states the labs are toxic. The production of one pound of methamphetamine results in six pounds of toxic waste. Comparatively, one pound of ecstasy results in 12 pounds of toxic waste. This toxic waste is usually disposed through careless dumping and results in local health hazards for the public and environmental contamination.
The training to deal with the labs is coming about through a partnership agreement between the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and the Ontario Fire Marshal (OFM).
Rick Bartolucci, Sudbury MPP and Minister of Community Safety & Correctional Services, OPP Deputy Commissioner Vince Hawkes, Provincial Commander responsible for Investigations and Organized Crime and Patrick Burke, Fire Marshal of Ontario described the development of a cooperative partnership agreement at a media conference.
The OPP Drug Enforcement Section (DES) also unveiled its latest asset for dismantling clandestine drug labs, a specially-designed provincial investigative response vehicle.
"The Ontario government continues to provide our law enforcement partners with the resources needed to put clandestine drug labs, and the criminal organizations that run them, out of business while ensuring the health and safety of those whose job it is to dismantle these illegal operations and preserve the safety of our communities," said Bartolucci.
"Clandestine drug labs, and the drugs they manufacture, have a toxic and destructive impact on the lives of people, their communities and the environment. Therefore, the OPP will continue to target these labs as well as the criminal organizations that operate this scourge on society," said Vince Hawkes, deputy commissioner, Ontario Provincial Police.
