A-Infos (en) US, Boston, Anarchist journal BAAM #14 - Biolab Panel Takes Flak From Locals by Jeff Reinhardt

Dr. Adel Mahmoud sat with his head in his hands at the center of the table 
seating 13 elite scientists. His frustration was obvious to everyone in the 
audience, but that did not stop speaker after speaker from coming up to the 
microphone and saying the same thing, in many different ways, basically 
amounting to this: the people of Boston don't feel safe and don't want Boston 
University's Biosafety Level 4 lab to operate. Yet the message for Mahmoud was
hard to take. ---- "We are just here to simply help the community," exclaimed 
Mahmoud after another angry speaker finished their rant. But the large majority 
of the crowd that had assembled at Hibernian Hall in Dudley Square, on Tuesday 
October 14 didn't see it that way.

    Mahmoud is the head of the National In-
stitutes of Health's (NIH) blue ribbon advi-
sory panel for doing further risk assessments
on the proposed BSL4 laboratory. This lab
will handle the most deadly pathogens in the
world, including ebola, anthrax, and the bu-
bonic plague. Labs such as these are usually
located away from densely populated urban
areas, but this lab has been placed in the heart
of a working class community.
    The blue ribbon panel was set up last May
by the NIH to determine better ways to as-
sess the risks of the lab and reach out to the
community (many of whom vehemently op-
pose the project). This was only after the
previous risk assessments were found to be
so scientifically flawed that they could not be
published in a scientific journal. This, along
with a state and federal lawsuit, has prevented
BU from operating the already-built lab in the
South End.
    The panel had intended the session to func-
tion as a way for the community to voice their
concerns and make suggestions on how BU
and the NIH can better ensure the safety and
foster open communication with the residents
around the lab. Unfortunately, for the vast
majority, this all came much too late.
    At-large councilor Michael Flaherty, who
had supported the lab for many years, voiced
his newly formed opposition to the project.
    "My support for the biolab was always
based on the belief that the biolab would not
present any meaningful safety and security
risks to Boston residents," said Flaherty. "I
realize now that my earlier decision to sup-
port the lab was made without knowing all
the details."
    City Councilors Charles Yancy and Sam
Yoon also spoke
out in opposition
to the lab. Most
of the councilors
pointed to the
lack of prepared-
ness for a pos-
sible    outbreak
from the lab,
including       the
poorly designed
evacuation plan
in Boston, and
the lack of a plan
to transport the
pathogens.
   "Are we pre-
pared as a city
government ... to respond to an accidental
or purposeful release from the lab?" asked
Yancy.
   City Councilor Chuck Turner, a longtime
opponent to the lab, spoke of the dishonesty
of BU and the NIH, who had both assumed
the lab would be opened without incident by
2006 and certainly by now.
    "When do we say that BU has not demon-
strated responsible policies?" asked Turner to
the panel. But he was not the only city coun-
cilor to speak out against the lab. "It's time to
put an end to another one of the ill-conceived
Bush administration policies."
    Members of Safety Net and the Stop the
Biolab Coalition, which have both been at
the forefront of battling the lab, met with
the city councilors on the previous Friday,
to further illuminate some of the issues at
stake. As it turns out, many members of city
council didn't know all the details of the lab
and some, like Flaherty, were persuaded to
change their stance.
    For years, the Stop the Biolab Coalition has
been fighting an uphill battle to convince mem-
bers of city council that the lab is not a good
idea. Several surrounding cities and towns
including Cambridge, Watertown, Newton,
and Wellesley
have all passed
moratoriums on
BSL4 research
in their districts
and now Bos-
ton residents are
asking their city
government to
do the same.
    For now, how-
ever, all parties
involved have a
period of wait-
ing, as the blue
ribbon      panel
figures out what,
suggestions     it
can give for further risk assessments and com-
munity involvement. For them, this meeting
fell short of expectations, while for others it
succeeded.
    "When you come to a community meet-
ing," said one resident during the hearing,
"prepare for the unexpected."

----------------------------------------
See also:
http://baamboston.org (not allways avilable)
Email: wordup (nospam) riseup.net

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