Property Cleanup

Once law enforcement shuts down a meth lab, a long and expensive process follows to clean up the property so that it is safe to use again. The process begins with the Department of Ecology conducting the removal process of chemicals and contaminated lab equipment and disposing them at a toxic waste disposal facility.

Next, the local health department examines the home and any other structures and vehicles on the property and determines the degree of contamination. If the local health department determines that a property is contaminated, the property owner is responsible for clean up.

For some property owners, the cost can be a real strain. For example, the average price to clean up a 1,200 square foot house is $7,700, which doesn't include the cost of replacing household furnishings, appliances, carpets, drapes, or appliances that may need to be removed. Nor does it include the cost of repairing or replacing damaged plumbing.

Property owners can hire a specially licensed contractor to remediate the property. However, if the local health department will grant permission, Washington state law allows homeowners to perform the clean up themselves, after consulting with the Department of Health to ensure that they are protecting themselves and properly disposing of contaminated waste.

To ensure full disclosure to protect potential buyers of a property, the local health department requires the county auditor's office to list the property as a former meth lab, during the remediation phase, placing a black mark on the property and making it difficult to sell. Once the remediation process is complete, the local health department will certify that the property meets public health standards. The county then changes the designation on the home's title, stating that the damage has been remediated. Because the state has not conducted research to determine the impact that these former meth labs have on property values, it is difficult to measure the effect, if any, to the properties themselves and other properties in the area.

While expensive and time consuming, ridding a property of the contamination is easy when compared to repairing the damage that the meth caused in the lives of individuals and their families.