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SALT LAKE CITY -- On Wednesday, lawmakers will be meeting to discuss potential legislation to ban Spice, a marijuana-like synthetic. Now, the sponsor of that bill is interested in stopping Ivory Wave as well.
Ivory Wave is sold at smoke shops, and most users don't put it in a bath, they snort it. Chemists say the main ingredient, MDPV, is coincidentally similar to illegal drugs.
University of Utah Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, Thomas Cheatham, says MDPV has a similar core chemical structure to methamphetamine and ecstasy. Cheatham says this probably wasn't a mistake.
He says, "If you find some chemical compound that has similar effects to a drug that's illegal, you can produce it, sell it for a lot of money and it's perfectly legal." It's legal for now.
Rep. Gage Froerer, R-Ogden, is behind legislation to ban Spice -- a marijuana-like synthetic that's gained popularity as of late. He says if Ivory Wave isn't being used as a bath salt, it probably shouldn't be allowed on the market.
"Does it have a beneficial use to the public?" asks Froerer. "In my opinion, in the way it's described, no it does not, and therefore should it be placed on the controlled substance list? I would say yes."
Froerer says if Ivory Wave doesn't make it on his bill, it's worth looking at in the future, especially with more of these synthetic copy-cat drugs popping up.
He says, "As long as there's profit out there, as long as there's drug dealers and manufacturers of these types of products, it'll continue."
Froerer says he's going to have the Controlled Substance Advisory Board look into Ivory Wave.
E-mail: ngonzales@ksl.com
