New state law credited for 124 fewer meth labs in Oklahoma

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- Officials say Oklahoma had 124 fewer methamphetamine labs during the first six months of the year.<br/><br/>The decrease comes after a new state law that restricts sales of cold medicines

Tuesday, July 13th 2004, 5:45 am

By: News On 6

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- Officials say Oklahoma had 124 fewer methamphetamine labs during the first six months of the year.

The decrease comes after a new state law that restricts sales of cold medicines that contain the illegal drug's key ingredient, pseudoephedrine.

The drop in meth labs saved Oklahoma taxpayers $434,000 in cleanup costs.

Officials say it costs the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation an average of $3,500 to clean up a single meth lab.

OSBI investigated a total of 50 labs last month, far below the 90 labs investigated in March.