Cracker mate, the meth's back in town

The series Breaking Bad has raised public awareness of the drug methamphetamine.

Once or twice a week in the New South Wales town of Wellington, a burst of firecrackers goes off late at night to deliver a message that the residents have long since learnt to recognise: a local drug dealer has taken delivery of a fresh supply of crystal methamphetamine.

The fireworks are just one of many unwelcome recent developments in this town of 4500 people, which has been so overrun by crystal meth, or "ice", that it has become known as "Little Antarctica".

Police Inspector Scott Tanner, who works in Wellington, said children as young as 10 have been experimenting with the drug, a highly addictive euphoria-inducing stimulant made notorious by the TV series Breaking Bad.

Having observed close-up the "insane strength" of those high on ice, he says it has left people "scared of their kids and grandkids".

"It is so cheap, so easy to get hold of," he said. "It is as little as A$20 ($21.80) a hit - cheaper than a carton of beer. We got called to a domestic situation last week. A large individual had been on an ice binge. It took five policemen to hold him down. He managed to bend the handcuffs. In 23 years of policing I have never seen that."

While Wellington's problems are extreme, they are visible in towns across Australia, which has among the highest rates of methamphetamine use in the world. About 7 per cent of the population has used the drug, with more than 2 per cent having used it in the past year, compared with about 0.5 per cent in the United States and 1 per cent in Britain.

Authorities say the drug is largely manufactured in "meth labs" or imported from South East Asia and distributed by crime syndicates and outlaw biker gangs. Its low cost and increasing purity have left Australia in the grip of a devastating epidemic.

In recent months, two federal and state MPs have made emotional public appeals for help after revealing their own children were addicts. A federal "ice task force", set up in April, is due to present a plan next month for tackling the use and supply of the drug.

Some of the worst-hit communities have already begun to fight back.

The residents and police of Wellington have started a programme called "Dob in a Dealer", encouraging locals to give anonymous tip-offs to authorities. In just three months, the information has poured in and the programme has led to arrests of local dealers and a reduction in the availability of the drug.

Residents say the changes are noticeable: the firecrackers, which used to explode almost every night, now only go off once or twice a week.

"It was time for us to take our fate into our own hands," said Alison Conn, who runs a local community organisation.

"Dobbing in Australia is something we don't take to very kindly. But this has been impacting our families and our sisters and brothers. The dealers have quietened down. They know people are watching them."