Gavel Falls on Biolab

doi:10.1126/science.313.5788.747d

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ScienceScope

A local judge wants Massachusetts and Boston University to do a more thorough review of the environmental impact of its planned biosafety level 4 lab in downtown Boston. Last week, Suffolk Superior Court Judge Ralph Gants concluded that previous assessments hadn't put enough weight on alternative sites or worst-case scenarios for the lab, which would handle highly toxic substances on Boston University's medical campus in the city's South End.

Opponents of the lab, who argued in a lawsuit that the area is too densely populated for such biological work, were elated. But the decision won't halt construction of the $178 million building, the future of which, Gants noted, the ruling does not address. The university intends to appeal.