Residents of Roxbury and South Boston vented frustration with the continuing construction of Boston University’s Level 4 Biosafety laboratory to a National Institutes of Health spokeswoman yesterday at Saint Patrick’s Parish Church in Roxbury, saying they remain unsatisfied with the explanations lab officials have given.
The public hearing came three days after a federal judge refused an injunction to stop construction filed by the Conservation Law Foundation on behalf of area residents. However, the judge ordered the NIH, which is funding construction with a federal grant, to conduct further risk assessments of a possible outbreak.
NIH spokeswoman Debbie Wilson said the assessment, which will focus on the possibility of a lab technician carrying a disease from the facility into the community, will be published in a medical journal and will take four to six months.
Wilson defended her agency, telling residents the lab was not designed for military purposes — as the word “bioterror” suggests — but will focus on researching cures for diseases and potential outbreaks.
“When I’m talking about the civilian biodefense initiative, I’m talking about the protection of the people in this area,” she said. “There is no defense [department] money associated with this laboratory.”
Wilson’s assurances failed to satisfy dozens of residents, who grew frustrated when she would not answer questions beyond those pertaining to the risk assessment. Several called the meeting a waste of time.
Boston City Councilor Charles Yancey (Dorchester, Mattapan) said the construction site is a dangerous place for the lab because the area is so densely populated. He added that at past Council meetings, the NIH failed to convince him the institute had seriously weighed other potential sites, as it is required to by law.
“We heard from proponents and opponents, and neither could describe or articulate [an evacuation plan],” Yancey said.
Green-Rainbow gubernatorial candidate Grace Ross asked Wilson whether the risk assessment would provide residents with real answers.
Klare Allen, a member of the lab-opposition group Safety Net, said residents have never wanted the lab in their area. She added that residents were angry that they had not been consulted before construction began.
“The community’s response from the beginning has been ‘come and talk to the residents,’” Allen said, adding this was the first time she had sat down with representatives from the planned lab.
BU Vice President for Operations Gary Nicksa and a BU attorney were present for the hearing, but did not field residents’ questions.
Nicksa denied that the university neglected to consult with the community, saying he had met with residents’ groups “hundreds of times.”
“I don’t know what we could say that could ever convince them we can do this safely,” he said.
