Scientists Object to Planned Boston Bioterror Lab

A letter of protest signed by 150 scientists and researchers was submitted yesterday to Boston city councilors in response to plans for a top-level security laboratory to be built near Boston Medical Center for the study of bioterrorism agents (see GSN, Oct. 2, 2003).

The laboratory would be designed to facilitate research on such biological agents as anthrax, smallpox, plague and viral hemorrhagic fever. 

Planned safety measures aren’t enough to protect the community, said Elliot Mishler, a Harvard Medical School psychology professor and one of the letter’s authors.

“It’s a disaster in the making,” Mishler said. “They’re not willing to acknowledge what the risks are,” he added.

Supports of the facility countered that the center would bring jobs to the city while supporting research on deadly diseases. Boston Medical Center has community support for the project, said spokeswoman Ellen Berlin. 

“We have held more than 60 meetings and spoken with hundreds of Boston residents about the laboratory,” said Berlin. “We have garnered significant support and will continue our community outreach,” she added (Jennifer Heldt Powell, Boston Herald, April 13).

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