St. Lawrence County law enforcement agencies are warning people who drink or drug and drive this holiday season of a crackdown.

The county is participating in a special enforcement effort to crack down on impaired driving through Jan. 1.

As part of the New York State STOP-DWI Enforcement Crackdowns, St. Lawrence County STOP-DWI will be working with New York State Police, St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office, Potsdam Police Department and New York State Park Police Department in their efforts to protect everyone from drivers impaired by alcohol and drugs during this busy time of year.

The holiday season is historically a deadly period for impaired driving, according to the St. Lawrence County traffic safety officials.

New York State Police, county sheriff’s offices and municipal law enforcement agencies across the state will be in on the effort to reduce the number of alcohol and drug related injuries and deaths.

St. Lawrence County Sheriff Kevin Wells says that all impaired driving, whether it is alcohol, prescription medicines or illegal drug use, is a problem in the county. Local, county and state law enforcement personnel are trained, prepared and motivated to combat this issue. “Buzzed” driving or drugged driving it is still illegal and poses a danger to the other motorists and innocent victims that many times are affected by the actions of these irresponsible drivers, Wells says.

STOP-DWI efforts across New York have led to significant reductions in the numbers of alcohol and drug related fatalities, county officials say, but too many lives are still being lost because of crashes caused by drunk or impaired drivers. Highly visible, highly publicized efforts like the STOP-DWI Crackdown Campaign aim to further reduce the incidence of drunk and impaired driving.

The funding for the crackdown was provided by the New York State STOP- DWI Foundation through a grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee.