Tri-Valley CAREs
Communities Against a Radioactive Environment
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Appeals Court considers Livermore 'hot lab'
By: Chris Metinko
Published In: Contra Costa Times
Watchdog groups want the federal government to further investigate the
impacts of possible terrorist attacks before it proceeds with its plan
to open a laboratory to study anthrax, plague and other deadly pathogens
at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory.
At a hearing Tuesday in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San
Francisco, the Livermore-based Tri-Valley Communities Against a
Radioactive Environment and Nuclear Watch New Mexico groups argued the
Department of Energy did not do an adequate assessment of the potential
environmental impacts of locating a "hot lab" in Livermore.
The groups' main concern is what it sees as a failing by the DOE to
consider possible terrorist attacks against the lab and what that could
mean to residents of the Bay Area if a deadly pathogen is released. The
groups argued such a study is crucial because combining nuclear
materials and bio-warfare agents in the same facility would make the lab
an even more attractive target for terrorists.
DOE lawyer Todd Aagaard said the department looked at a variety of
catastrophic events -- including earthquakes -- to see what the impacts
could be on the area. He told the panel of federal judges the lab's
environmental assessment report studied disasters that could be
considered even worse than a terrorist attack. He added the DOE could
not study every type of disaster in great detail for its assessment, but
did study what it thought to be most critical.
Steve Volker, Tri-Valley CAREs' attorney, questioned why the DOE did not
investigate possible alternative sites for such a lab, instead choosing
to put it in the densely populated Bay Area. That question seemed to
strike a chord with at least one of the three judges on the panel.
"What I find to be the most troublesome thing is this is being built in
a very highly populated area," said Circuit Chief Judge Mary Schroeder.
Volker said he hopes the appeals court will have a decision sometime
before August, which is when the lab is expected to open. He would like
the court to order a new environmental assessment or for the DOE to do a
full-blown environmental impact statement.
Tri-Valley CAREs originally sued the Energy Department over proposed hot
labs at Livermore and Los Alamos national laboratories in August 2003.
The following December, a federal judge barred shipments of biological
agents including botulism, anthrax, plague, valley fever and Q fever
until a final decision on the lawsuit was made. In September 2004, the
judge gave Livermore's biosafety lab the go-ahead.
The watchdog groups appealed the decision to the 9th Circuit Court in
November 2004, which prompted Tuesday's hearing.
In November 2005, the DOE announced it would do a full environmental
report for the proposed hot lab at Los Alamos.
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Reach Chris Metinko at 510-763-5418 or [email protected]
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