National Academies Press: OpenBook
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2011. Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on Preparation of Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston University NEIDL, Phase 3. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13310.
×

Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on
Preparation of Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston
University NEIDL, Phase 3

Committee on Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on Preparation of
Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston University NEIDL

Board on Life Sciences
Division on Earth and Life Studies

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
                                                                     OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2011. Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on Preparation of Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston University NEIDL, Phase 3. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13310.
×
Page R1
Next: Letter Report »
Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on Preparation of Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston University NEIDL, Phase 3 Get This Book
×
Buy Ebook | $24.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

In 2003, the Boston University Medical Center (BUMC) was awarded a $128 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to build one of two national maximum-containment laboratory facilities for pathogen research. The National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL) are meant to support the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases' biodefense research agenda, conducting research to develop new approaches to treating, preventing, and diagnosing a variety of bacterial and viral diseases. The facility includes a biosafety level 4 (BSL-4) containment laboratory housed in a 192,000 square foot building. Although the NEIDL BSL-4 laboratory accounts for only 13 percent of the building's total space, it has been the source of virtually all of the community concern surrounding this project. The location of the facility on Albany Street in Boston's South End, which is an environmental justice community, has been controversial, and there have been numerous public meetings over the plans for the facility as well as three legal actions challenging the project.

Continuing Assistance to the National Institutes of Health on Preparation of Additional Risk Assessments for the Boston University NEIDL, Phase 3, the fifth in a series of reports about the proposed facility, provides further technical input on the scope and design of any additional studies that may be needed to assess the risks associated with the siting and operation of the NEIDL. This report presents comments and questions on a "90 percent", or penultimate, draft of the revised risk assessment. According to the report, the "90 percent" draft of the risk assessment is a substantial improvement over past documents reviewed. Additionally, the report makes recommendations to improve the version that is ultimately prepared for public comment.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!