Montana House Bill 60 Makes Way for Meth Lab Cleanup
By Meghan Piercy, New West Unfiltered 10-04-05
Montana House Bill 60, which provides the first state standards for decontamination of clandestine methamphetamine labs (CML), took effect October 1, 2005.
“This is a big day for us. We’ve waited a long time,� said Ed Thamke, bureau chief of the Department of Environmental Quality’s Waste and Underground Tank Management Bureau, which is administering the bill.
HB 60 mandates that property owners of CML’s must notify, in writing, “any subsequent occupant or purchaser� if the property has not been cleaned up to new state standards. The bill also requires DEQ to certify cleanup contractors and administer reporting on decontamination status of CML’s.
Last week 26 contractors attended a drug lab cleanup certification course in Helena, taught by Troy Corbin, certified industrial hygienist with Marine and Environmental Testing, Inc. of Portland Oregon. Eight people were certified by October 1. The remainder need to take an additional class called HAZWOPER, or Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response, to complete certification requirements. DEQ will list all certified contractors on their website: http://www.deq.state.mt.
The cleanup program is voluntary but, said Thamke, “If it’s not effective, it will no longer be a voluntary program.�
DEQ maintains a list of all non-remediated CML addresses, much like the Department of Justice’s sexual and violent offender registry. The list is located on the DEQ website. Presently there are 260 CML properties listed statewide, including 27 within the city of Missoula. Only properties that have been processed through law enforcement make it onto the list. Properties will be de-listed after they have been remediated to state standards by certified cleanup contractors, and issued a “Certificate of Fitness� by the DEQ.
Property owners “are the silent victims,� says Thamke, because as it stands, they have to incur all expenses for fees, testing, decontamination and cleanup, and repair and replacement. Depending on how long the CML existed and how much methamphetamine was cooked on site, Corbin estimated that costs can range from $17,000 to $60,000 in Washington State, but costs may be lower in Montana, where the cost of living is cheaper.
At present there is nothing in the works to help property owners foot the bill, according to Deb Grimm, environmental scientist with DEQ’s Permitting and Compliance Division who will oversee the decontamination process. But there could be.
“Homeowners can approach the legislature,� Grimm said.
According to Thamke, Montana realtors and landlord/tenant associations weighed in heavily on this law and had a lot of influence.
Prior to HB 60, there were no state standards and no post testing of CML’s. Law enforcement could put a lien or notice on the title of the property, but there was no post-decontamination testing required, according to Grimm.
Before HB 60, property owners either cleaned the contaminated property themselves, or they called a cleaning company to do it for them, Grimm said.
But now, according to Thamke, it is plausible that renters can sue the owner for civil liability if the CML is not decontaminated to state standards, which includes cleanup by certified contractors.
HB 60, which allows for only “0.1 micrograms of methamphetamine per 100 square centimeters of surface material,� is stricter than Colorado’s standards and not as strict as Oregon, Corbin said.
Bob Martin of the DEQ, has interpreted HB 60 and written the administrative rules for the bill. He said the rules will be up for public comment by the end of the year.
The bill defines “inhabitable property� as property “intended to be primarily occupied by people, either as a dwelling or a business, including a storage facility, mobile home, or recreational vehicle, that may be sold, leased, or rented for any length of time.�
Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly reported that the strictness of Colorado's standards compared to HB 60.
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