Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, Rep. Al Green voted in support to H.R. 365, a bill that charges the Environmental Protection Agency with the development of health-based guidelines to assist state and local authorities in cleaning up former meth lab sites.

The House passed the bill yesterday afternoon by a vote of 426 to 2.

Meth labs are found in all fifty states and two-thirds of all meth labs are found in residential settings.  The Drug Enforcement Administration reports that more than 450 meth labs were seized in the state of Texas in 2005.

"The chemicals required to manufacture meth are extremely toxic and many are potentially flammable or explosive.  Nearly one in five meth labs are found because they caused fires or explosions, which can result in injuries or death for meth producers, their families, and first responders," Rep. Green stated.

This bill would direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology to consult with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in developing technologies to detect meth labs, emphasizing in field test kits for law enforcement.  This bill would also require the National Academy of Sciences to study the long-term health impacts of meth exposure on first-responders and on children taken from meth lab sites.

"The potential health effects of chronic exposure to meth labs can include kidney and liver damage, neurological problems, and increased risk of cancer," Rep. Green explained.  "Families are unknowingly being put in harm’s way by moving into residences that were once used as meth labs."

According to a 2006 National Drug Threat Survey of state and local law enforcement agencies across the nation, meth was named most often as the greatest drug threat in communities.