Meth Manufacture Means Hellacious Cleanup Bills
Maine disclosure forms reveal a lot of potential problems for prospective home buyers from asbestos to lead paint to radon, but they do not disclose whether the home has been contaminated with methamphetamine. Bill York, owner of Gorham-based Meth Remediators, says, "A new home buyer doesn't have any protection. And they've just bought a toxic environment." Margaret McVey, who has rented out her property in Southwest Harbor for 13 years, found that tenants had contaminated the home, forcing her to contact Penobscot Cleaning Services Inc. to help deal with the mess. "They came over and they started cleaning it and within 30 minutes they found enough stuff to say that the tenants had been cooking meth," she says. They then called the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and Southwest Harbor Police, as well as the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. They helped remove needles and other hazardous and flammable materials, clearing the way for the cleanup company she hired to finish its work. McVey says the whole process cost her about $23,000, including the removal of hazardous materials, dumpsters, and making the property re-inhabitable.