By Marylia Kelley,
Executive Director, Tri-Valley CAREs
March 17, 2003
Thumbing its nose at the nation's environmental
laws, the Department of Energy (DOE) on December 16, 2002 granted
itself the go-ahead to construct and operate a bio-warfare agent
facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
The agency signed a "finding of no significant
impact," opening the flood gate to the importation of live anthrax,
plague and other deadly bio-agents to the Bay Area nuclear weapons
lab - all without benefit of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
to analyze the dangers and alternatives. In making its determination,
the DOE ignored nearly 100 letters calling on the agency to conduct
an EIS and hold public hearings.
The DOE plans to buy a 1,500 square foot,
prefabricated building and place it on a cement slab in the middle
of the Lab's one and one-half square mile site. After sealing and
testing it for air tightness, DOE says it could have it up and running
by the end of this summer.
The bio-warfare facility would be a biosafety
level 3 (BSL-3), so it will require double sets of doors and a special
ventilation system. Workers will wear protective suits with masks
and gloves. According to DOE documents, the bio-agents (e.g., germs,
viruses, bacteria, bio-toxins and genetic mods) will arrive by various
means, including courier truck and the U.S. Postal Service.
In addition to its obvious health, environment
and security risks, a broad range of scientists and policy analysts
has harshly criticized the proposed BSL-3 for its potentially devastating
impact on the global control of bio-weapons, and on the treaty banning
them.
Barbara Rosenberg, chair of the Federation
of American Scientists' working group on biological weapons considers
it risky to locate a BSL-3 facility inside a working center for
the creation of weapons of mass destruction. "It makes a handy excuse
for why there can't be any kind of verification that the biological
defense work in the lab is in compliance with the ban on biological
weapons," she told the Stockton Record.
Tri-Valley CAREs is working with independent
scientists and allied groups across the country to oppose the facility.
Further, we are investigating the possibility of bringing litigation
to compel DOE to conduct a thorough environmental and nonproliferation
analysis before operations can begin.
Public education is an important part of
our campaign. We have just drafted a petition that can serve as
both an outreach tool and a way for people to express their opposition.
The bio-petition, Tri-Valley CAREs' comments on the proposed facility
and other resources are available on our website at www.trivalleycares.org.
We welcome an opportunity to work with the Alameda County Greens
as we move this campaign forward.
On a related issue, Tri-Valley CAREs is
continuing its work to expose the nuclear weapons programs at Livermore
Lab and to eliminate them in favor of peaceful, environmentally-friendly
civilian science research initiatives. Currently, Livermore Lab
is developing a modification of the B83 "lay-down" nuclear bomb
to give it earth-penetrating capability. These new "bunker-busting"
nuclear weapons are being touted as militarily usable in Iraq and,
more generally, in Bush's open-ended "war on terrorism." Tri-Valley
CAREs and allied groups will be shining the spotlight on this and
other horrific, destructive programs at the Lab this coming August
when we commemorate the dropping of atomic bombs on the cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan by hosting a massive peace rally and
action.
In 2003, the Hiroshima commemoration will
be held on Sunday, August 10 to facilitate participation by Veterans
for Peace following their annual meeting in the Bay Area. We also
invite the Greens to co-sponsor, to come and table and, above all,
to participate. Working together toward our collective vision of
peace, justice and a healthy environment, we will make a difference
- locally, nationally and globally!
Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against a
Radioactive Environment) 2582 Old First Street, Livermore, CA USA
94551 http://www.trivalleycares.org
tel. (925) 443-7148; fax (925) 443-0177
Close
Window
|