[CPEO-MEF] Court Rules on Livermore Lab Bio-Warfare Agent Facility

[marylia@earthlink.net (marylia)]

For more information:
Tri-Valley CAREs: Marylia Kelley or Loulena Miles, (925) 443-7148
 Nuclear Watch New Mexico: Jay Coghlan, (505) 989-7342
 Lead attorney: Stephan Volker, (510) 496-0600

For immediate release: October 16, 2006
COMMUNITY GROUPS HAIL VICTORY, COURT GRANTS DEMAND FOR ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
BEFORE BIO-WARFARE AGENT RESEARCH FACILITY OPENS AT LIVERMORE LAB;

9th Circuit Court Issues Final Decision in Landmark National Lawsuit

San Francisco -- The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling today
holding an Energy Department environmental study inadequate and thereby
halting Energy's impending plans to operate the first advanced biowarfare
agent research facility inside a US nuclear weapons lab. This decision
follows three years of litigation and public outcry against the planned
operation of the dangerous facility.

The Biosafety Level-3 facility was designed to conduct aerosol experiments
and genetic modifications using lethal pathogens such as live anthrax,
plague, botulism and Q fever.  The Energy Department had omitted any study
of security risks and terrorist threats to the facility on the basis that
such an analysis was not required under the National Environmental Policy
Act.

The Ninth Circuit Court upheld plaintiffs' contention that the Energy Dept.
acted illegally in omitting that analysis.

Two plaintiff organizations, the Livermore Lab watchdog group, Tri-Valley
CAREs, and the Los Alamos Lab watchdog group, Nuclear Watch of New Mexico,
along with individually-named community members, demanded that the Energy
Dept. conduct a thorough study of the project's potential environmental
impacts -- including potential terrorist threats.

In today's decision, the Ninth Circuit remanded the environmental review
back to the Department of Energy for further analysis on terrorist risks,
and possibly a full environmental impact statement, before the facility can
operate.

"We are thrilled that the Court sent the Department of Energy back to the
drawing board on this ill-conceived plan," said Marylia Kelley, the
Executive Director of Tri-Valley CAREs, who lives down the street from
Livermore Lab.  "I feel safer today because of the court's decision. This
is a huge victory for the residents of the Bay Area."

Kelley continued, "In the event of a terrorist attack on this laboratory
where bioagents become airborne, hundreds or thousands of people could have
been exposed to deadly pathogens."

"This decision marks a turning point for Department of Energy
decision-making and sets a precedent for Energy Department facilities
across the nation, ensuring that they cannot open without a stringent
environmental review," said Tri-Valley CAREs' Staff Attorney Loulena
Miles. "Now the agency cannot merely cry National Security and avoid hard
questions concerning environmental impacts and terrorist risks."

The original lawsuit challenged both the Livermore Lab's plans to operate
the BSL-3 facility without proper environmental study as well as a sister
proposal for Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico to open a similar biolab,
also without thorough environmental review.

Jay Coghlan, Executive Director of Nuclear Watch New Mexico, believes this
decision is likely to have wide-ranging impacts as well. "This decision in
California is excellent. The question is how it might apply to Energy
Department activities across the country. For instance, the Department is
expanding the Los Alamos nuclear weapons programs, but failed to consider
potential terrorism. New environmental review of the Los Alamos biolab is
expected soon.  DOE is about to begin review of the nation-wide nuclear
weapons complex. Because the post-9/11 consequences to the public can be so
very serious, potential terrorism effects should be considered in each
case. We are very pleased that our litigation is leading in that
direction," said Coghlan.

After plaintiffs filed suit in 2003, the Energy Dept. withdrew its approval
for the Los Alamos biolab and, therefore, litigation went forward only on
the Livermore proposal. Neither of the advanced biowarfare agent research
facilities that were the subject of the original litigation have opened.
The Dept. of Energy is presently conducting further analysis of the
environmental risks of the Los Alamos bio-lab proposal.

If either of these advanced biowarfare agent research facilities would have
been allowed to open, it would be the first time an advanced biowarfare
agent research lab would have operated inside a US nuclear weapons lab.

"Opening this lab would have sent a signal to the world that it is
acceptable to study advanced biowarfare agent research inside classified
nuclear weapons labs," argued Loulena Miles.  "A handful of committed
individuals have kept advanced biowarfare agent research out of the hands
of US nuclear weapons labs so far, but we still have a lot of work to do."

-- 30 --

Marylia Kelley
Executive Director
Tri-Valley CAREs
(Communities Against a Radioactive Environment)
2582 Old First Street
Livermore, CA USA 94551

<http://www.trivalleycares.org> - is our web site address. Please visit us
there!

(925) 443-7148 - is our phone
(925) 443-0177 - is our fax


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