Housing New Zealand has promised to take a harder line weeding out home methamphetamine labs as the number of properties which need decontamination increases in the Waikato.

MethSolutions primarily deals with cleaning homes previously used to manufacture methamphetamine. It tests and cleans homes found with the drug residue and has reported an increase in work around the region.

Housing NZ and the police are working together to stop home-based drug labs. Photo: File

Its director Miles Stratford says of the 400 homes tested for the drug in the greater Waikato - which includes Hamilton, Tokoroa, Te Awamutu and Hauraki, 160 returned positive results for methamphetamine, also known as P.

MethSolutions use an independent laboratory to test samples taken from the homes.

'...and the number of positive tests coming that have found significant levels of methamphetamine and related drugs is rising,” Stratford says.

P contamination rampant and growing in New Zealand state homes

'Commercial properties are also at risk, if there is water and a heating source, clandestine labs can be made. Contaminated housing and commercial properties are steadily rising.”

Stratford says there are some common factors when it comes to the discovery of methamphetamine in homes.

'A young couple with a small child move into a property. The child becomes unwell, they try all sorts of things and usually test for meth last. That's when they find out they have a significant problem with the property.”

The number of landlords forking out hundreds to get their property tested is also on the rise.

The cost of a standard test is about $200, however if methamphetamine residue is found the costs also rise dramatically.

'If meth is found, another $3000 is needed for forensic testing which also comes with a comprehensive report.”

If a substantial amount of residue is found, usually where a lab has been set up, it can cost between $10,000 to $50,000 to decontaminate.

In a worse case scenario, the house is destroyed.

The problem has also seen the Government dish out huge wads of cash for cleaning up the mess.

Ten state homes in the greater Waikato region, which incorporates Coromandel and the King Country, have been decontaminated since 2013.

Nationally, 431 state homes needed to be decontaminated in the same period.

Housing New Zealand spent $2.3 million last year cleaning contaminated state homes.

Social Housing Minister Paula Bennett says the ministry would not tolerate methamphetamine use in its social housing stock.

'We are not going to risk houses suspected of being drug dens today, becoming potentially toxic playgrounds for innocent children in the future.”

Housing NZ was working with police to take a harder line on eliminating methamphetamine use in homes 'as opposed to previously only targeting home-based drug manufacturing,” she says.

P CONTAMINATED HOMES UNHEALTHY

* P can cause neurological damage, irritation, and kidney failure, particularly among small children crawling in contaminated carpet.

* In addition, inhaling or investing chemicals used in the drug's production can be dangerous. Concentrated corrosive acids could cause injuries while volatile hydrocarbons like benzene could cause cancer and kidney damage.

* Heavy metals sometimes used in production, like mercury and lead, could also cause neurological or kidney damage, and birth defects, presenting a particular risk for pregnant women.

- Stuff