Tri-Valley CAREs

Thursday, July 12, 2007  
Tracy site doesn't make cut

By: Mike Martinez
Published In: Tri-Valley Herald

SUBTITLE: Facility for studying contagions to be built outside California



TRACY ? Federal officials have whittled down their list of potential locations for a proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, and Site 300, located in the hills south of Tracy, is not on it.



The Department of Homeland Security selected sites in Mississippi, Kansas, Texas, North Carolina and Georgia as finalists for the proposed lab, much to the delight of local activists.



Marylia Kelley, executive director of Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment, called it "a major victory for the community."



"It's a victory the community as a whole has won," Kelley said. "This facility is going to be one of the most dangerous bio-warfare agent research facilities in the world, not just the country. It's going to be bigger than five Wal-Marts."



The lab had proposed that the research laboratory be built at Site 300. The facility, funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, would research and develop cures for life-threatening diseases affecting both humans and animals.



Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory spokeswoman Susan Houghton said officials were "extremely disappointed."



"We felt our proposal was extremely strong," she said. "We felt more importantly that it was vital that a facility like this be located in the state of California because there was a lot the state had to offer. We don't know any of the specifics why our facility was not selected."



The facility will replace an aging, smaller lab at Plum Island, N.Y., where security lapses after the 2001 terrorist attacks drew scrutiny from Congress and government investigators.



Congress provided money for the $47 million design and architecture, but no money has been appropriated for construction or operations yet. The site should be announced next year.



The Plum Island lab conducts research on foot-and-mouth disease and other germs to protect agriculture and livestock from foreign diseases.



The new lab will do that and research on other diseases and contagions, possibly including anthrax, smallpox and Marburg and Lassa, rare hemorrhagic fevers.



The sites were chosen by a team from Homeland Security, along with the departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services.



One of the criteria examined by the panelists selecting the final sites was community acceptance.



In January, the Tracy City Council voted 3-1 to send a letter opposing the proposal.



A grassroots effort, spearheaded by Tri-Valley Cares, also collected thousands of signatures in opposition.



"We don't want to see any unnatural hazards happen in any community," Kelley said.



"Even as we're celebrating our victory today, and it's a huge victory, I'm going to sleep better tonight knowing the Ebola virus, foot-and-mouth disease and anthrax are not coming to Site 300, but they are still planned from some community."



Chris Harrington, a spokesman for the University of California, which operates the Livermore lab and Site 300, said even though their proposal is no longer under consideration, the university remains committed to working with DHS in the future.



"UC is hopeful that the DHS will not rule out options to locate a bio and agro-defense facility in California in the future," Harrington said in a prepared statement.



"California is the nation's largest food producer ? which includes the largest dairy industry ? and the state which has the largest volume of agricultural imports and exports through seaports and borders.



"Working with the DHS to insure the safety of the multi-faceted food production and safety systems of California and the nation will remain a high priority for UC."



Site 300 is still awaiting word on paperwork resubmitted to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District to raise the amount of outdoor explosives allowed during outdoor testing.



The permit application, filed on April 6, said the lab anticipates using up to 350 pounds per day and up to 8,000 pounds of explosives per year.



Among the dangerous materials expected to be found in the explosions are thallium and depleted uranium, according to the application.



Last November, Lawrence Livermore Laboratory was originally granted permission to expand its explosives testing from 1,000 to 8,000 pounds per year.



But the air district rescinded the permits following an appeal hearing in February.



The Associated Press contributed to this report. Mike Martinez can be reached at (209) 832-3947 or at [email protected].

This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Back to TVC in the news...