MARQUETTE, MI-- Being aware of meth dump sites and people who may be buying components is the key to fighting the spread of meth in the U.P.
That’s according to Detective Lieutenant Tim Sholander, commander of the Upper Peninsula Substance Enforcement Team. He says meth has spread so quickly because it’s relatively easy to make it.
“The way they manufacture meth today is in a pop bottle, and it’s a very simple way to manufacture it. The components are very simple to get. So it’s very easy for one meth cooker to teach another meth cooker how to cook,” he says.
Sholander says about 80 percent of the meth labs discovered by UPSET are found in Marquette County.
He notes meth isn’t really a drug that’s sold on the streets for money.
“Because they only can yield so much, it’s not really a drug that they’d use to sell to try and create an income,” he says. “It’s more or less where they’re only manufacturing it and they’re only creating about two grams of it, and they’re using those grams to get themselves high and maybe one or two other people who helped them purchase some of the components.”
Sholander says state restrictions on pseudoephedrine have brought a lot of awareness to the meth problem, but adds it would have to become a prescription drug in order to cut down on meth production.
Anyone who sees possible meth-related activity is asked to call their local police department.
