Whether it’s ecstasy, speed or crystal meth, producing illicit synthetic drugs generates toxic waste. This often ends up in the local environment, posing a threat to humans, wildlife and the land. We look at cases in the Netherlands and Germany.

Could we just be seeing the tip of the iceberg? How big is the problem of waste from illicit drug production? In the Netherlands – the European center of illegal synthetic drug production – a public debate is underway over the dangers of toxic waste. But in Germany, there’s still little awareness of the problem. However, investigators are increasingly sounding the alarm: the discovery of clandestine drug laboratories has shown that the cartels from the Netherlands are also active in Germany – and disposing of their waste there illegally.
Producing 1kg of amphetamines generates up to 30kg of toxic waste. In the Netherlands, the police find around 250,000 kilograms of this waste every year. Experts estimate that is only around a third of the actual amount of toxic waste produced. The gangs get rid of the rest in ways that go unnoticed – such as dumping it in nature reserves, where it seeps into the ground, pouring it into ponds and streams, where it poisons fish and other aquatic creatures, or mixing it into farmers’ liquid manure, which then gets spread over the fields.
This documentary investigates a subject that has so far gotten very little attention. It includes exclusive footage of the largest drug laboratory ever found in Germany and exposes a shocking case where the drug makers disposed of their toxic waste via a specially dug well, endangering local residents. The film crew also goes undercover with an investigator from the Dutch police. Together they make an incredible discovery.
The film sheds light on the dark underworld of synthetic drug production and explores the question of how dangerous this toxic waste could be to us all.

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