Defense Dept. Agrees to Study Risk of Biological Research by Military
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WASHINGTON — The Defense Department has agreed to settle a lawsuit challenging its right to conduct biological warfare research by subjecting such programs to a comprehensive environmental impact study.
The settlement with the Foundation on Economic Trends, reached after months of negotiation, was approved Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Richey.
It commits the Pentagon to completing a draft impact statement within 15 months and a final report within about two years, assessing the environmental risks of studying defenses against natural and genetically engineered poisons.
While the settlement allows the Pentagon to continue such research in the interim, the agreement may produce one of the largest environmental assessments ever conducted by an arm of the federal government.
Risks to Be Assessed
All biological research programs within the Army, Navy and Air Force and those being performed under contract must be assessed “for public health and security risks arising from the accidental or intentional release of deadly pathogenic organisms,” said Jeremy Rifkin, the foundation’s president.
The Administration has requested $60.3 million for defensive biological research in fiscal 1988 and expects to spend $58.8 million this year.
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