Rick Sallinger
Reporting

(CBS4) DENVER Leaders of the state's Meth Task Force said a new law is taking a toll on the number of methamphetamine labs operating in Colorado.

The law forbids the sale of cold medicines over-the-counter that contain pseudo ephedrine which is a key ingredient in meth.

The new law took effect July 1 but already the task force said it appears to be having the impact that was intended.

"If you look across the country, putting the meth precursors behind the counter has almost eliminated it labs," said Attorney General John Suthers. "There's still some lab activity but it has dramatically decreased it."

Fewer meth labs have been discovered in neighborhoods which, in turn, decreases the chances of an explosion and improves health related issues.

"When you've eliminated labs it doesn't mean you've eliminated methamphetamine because now meth is going to come up even more so across the border from Mexico," said Lori Moriarty, with the State Meth Task Force.

Instead of 80 percent of the meth being imported from Mexico, it's expected to rise to 90 percent or more.

Colorado stores are also prohibited from more than just a small quantity of drugs containing pseudo ephedrine at a time but it may be difficult to enforce.

'Smurfing' is a problem police face in combating the meth problem. It's where people buy the cold medicine at numerous stores and then combine their stash to create meth.

The big problem remains the importation of methamphetamine created in so-called "super labs" in Mexico.

The task force is now developing a strategy to help local communities curb meth abuse.