**U.S. Department of Justice**Drug Enforcement AdministrationMethamphetamine Situation in the United States

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## Executive Summary

Methamphetamine trafficking and abuse in the United States have been on the rise overthe past few years, as indicated by investigative, seizure, price, purity, and abuse data.As a result, this drug is having a devastating impact in many communities across thenation. Although more common in western areas of the country, this impact increasingly isbeing felt in areas not previously familiar with the harmful effects of this powerfulstimulant. Clandestine production accounts for almost all of the methamphetamine trafficked andabused in the United States. The illicit manufacture of methamphetamine can beaccomplished in a variety of ways, but is produced most commonly using theephedrine/pseudoephedrine reduction method. Large-scale production of methamphetamineusing this method is dependent on ready access to bulk quantities of ephedrine andpseudoephedrine. During the past two years, several bulk ephedrine seizures destined forMexico focused attention on the magnitude of ephedrine acquisition by organized crime druggroups operating from Mexico and in the United States, and set in motion an effort tofocus international attention on the ephedrine diversion problem and to take action toprevent such diversion. 

Drug law enforcement efforts against clandestine methamphetamine producers constitute a"cat and mouse" game between efforts to cut off chemical supplies and efforts toobtain them from non-regulated sources. Past experience has demonstrated thatmethamphetamine traffickers are relentless, flexible, and creative in finding new ways toobtain chemicals by evading the network of international controls that has beenestablished. The Federal Government currently is preparing regulations to further reducethe diversion of pharmaceutical products containing chemicals, such as ephedrine andpseudoephedrine, that can be used to produce illegal drugs. It has consulted withcorporations within the pharmaceutical industry to develop a solution to the diversionproblem that does not unduly restrict the availability of these chemicals for legitimateuse. 

Domestically, large-scale production of methamphetamine is centered in California. Inaddition, methamphetamine increasingly is produced in Mexico and smuggled into the UnitedStates. Methamphetamine laboratory operators often are well-armed, and their laboratoriesoccasionally are booby-trapped and equipped with scanning devices employed as securityprecautions. Weaponry, ranging from single firearms to arsenals of high-powered weaponsand explosives, are commonly found at laboratory sites. Not only are methamphetaminelaboratories used to manufacture illegal, often deadly drugs, but the clandestine natureof the manufacturing process and the presence of ignitable, corrosive, reactive, and toxicchemicals at the sites have resulted in explosions, fires, toxic fumes, and irreparabledamage to human health and to the environment. 

Traditionally, the suppliers of methamphetamine throughout the United States have beenoutlaw motorcycle gangs and numerous other independent trafficking groups. Although thesegroups continue to produce and distribute methamphetamine, organized crime drug groupsoperating from Mexico currently dominate wholesale methamphetamine trafficking in theUnited States for several reasons: these organizations established access to wholesaleephedrine sources of supply on the international market; these organizations are producingunprecedented quantities of high-purity methamphetamine on a regular basis; and, theyalready control well-established cocaine, heroin, and marijuana distribution networksthroughout the western United States, enabling them to supply methamphetamine to a largeretail level market. Their expansion into the methamphetamine trade has added a newdimension to their role in the U.S. drug market and has redefined the methamphetamineproblem in the United States. Presently, these organizations are poised to supplymethamphetamine to the rest of the country in response to any increases in demand. 

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