Fort Detrick and Rocky Mountain Q&A, NIAID Fact Sheet http://web.archive.org/web/20050208095246/http:/www.niaid.nih.gov/fa...

February 2004

Questions and Answers

Overview

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a component of the National Institutes of
Health (NIH), plays a key role in the nation's biomedical research program. NIAID conducts and supports
research to understand, treat, and ultimately prevent the myriad infectious, immunologic, and allergic
diseases that threaten hundreds of millions of people worldwide. NIAID's Division of Intramural Research is
known as a state-of-the-art research enterprise carried out by world-class scientists on campuses in
Bethesda and Rockville, Maryland, and in Hamilton, Montana.

Because of NIAID's long-standing expertise in research on emerging infectious diseases, the Institute has
been mandated by the President to play a leading role in the nation's fight against bioterrorism. NIAID is
expanding its research programs to spearhead the development of new and improved diagnostics,
treatments, and vaccines for diseases caused by naturally occurring infectious agents as well as microbes
that may be intentionally released into a civilian population.

For that research to be carried out safely, NIH plans to construct a new Integrated Research Facility for
NIAID's biodefense program on the grounds of Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland. NIAID is committed to
ensuring that its employees work in the safest possible laboratories, and that these laboratories also
reduce to the maximal extent possible any potential risks to the surrounding community. The laboratories
will employ the highest safety standards recommended for the research proposed to be conducted there,
standards known as Biosafety Levels 3 and 4 (BSL-3 and BSL-4), to prevent scientists and the
environment from being exposed to microorganisms. Similar agents have been studied for decades at
facilities of the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) at Fort Detrick.
The new facility will comply with stringent Federal and state regulations for construction, use, security,
inspection, and certification.

Below are answers to some frequently asked questions about the proposed construction and operation of
this new Integrated Research Facility.

1. What type of facility is being planned?

The Integrated Research Facility is a 100,000-square-foot building housing laboratory space for
animal research, radiology equipment, mechanical space, and a waste-handling area. There will be
BSL-2 and BSL-3 laboratory suites similar to those in existing NIAID laboratories. In addition, there
will be a suite of laboratories designed to operate at BSL-4 that will occupy a small portion of the
building. More details will be available once the design phase begins.

2. What do the BSL numbers mean?

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Agents Practices Facilities

Level Equipment
BSL-1 These agents are Good Pipeting
not generally microbiological devices-
associated with practice mouth
disease in healthy Hand washing pipeting is
people No eating, prohibited
drinking or gum
chewing in the
laboratory
BSL-2 These agents are Limited lab Class I or II Open bench-top
associated with access Biological sink for hand
human disease Most work may Safety washing is
be performed on Cabinets required
a bench top (BSCs) or Autoclave
Biohazard other available
warning signs physical
"Sharps" containment
precautions devices
Biosafety Lab coats,
manual defining gloves, face
any needed protection,
waste as needed
decontamination
or medical
surveillance
policies
BSL-3 These agents: BSL-2 practice plus Class I or II BSL-2 plus
Are Controlled Biological Physical
associated access Safety separation from
with human Decontamination Cabinets access corridors
disease and of all waste (BSCs) or Self-closing,
cause illness Decontamination other double-door
by spreading of lab clothing physical access
through the before containment Exhaust air is
air (aerosol) laundering devices not recirculated
Cause Protective Negative airflow
diseases that lab clothing, into laboratory
may have gloves, Design includes
serious or respiratory back-
lethal protection up/redundant
consequences as needed systems
BSL-4 These agents: BSL-3 practices plus All BSL-3 plus
Are Clothing change procedures Separate
associated before entering conducted building or
with human Shower on exit in Class III isolated zone
disease and All material BSCs or Dedicated
cause illness decontaminated Class I or II supply and
by spreading on exit from BSCs in exhaust,
through the facility combination vacuum, and

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Fort Detrick and Rocky Mountain Q&A, NIAID Fact Sheet http://web.archive.org/web/20050208095246/http:/www.niaid.nih.gov/fa...

pp , Design includes
cause of positive- back-
transmission; pressure up/redundant
Cause personnel systems
diseases that suit Other
are usually requirements
life- outlined in
threatening; NIH/CDC
publication
"Biosafety in
Microbiological
and Biomedical
Laboratories"*

3. How many other research facilities in the U.S. have BSL-3 or BSL-4 laboratories?

Most facilities in the U.S. with infectious disease research programs have BSL-3 laboratories. In
addition, many hospitals have areas that can be operated at this level; these areas are used for
isolating patients with highly contagious diseases.

BSL-4 labs have the most stringent safety and security requirements. There are currently only four
operational BSL-4 laboratory suites in the United States: at the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention in Atlanta; at the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases at
Fort Detrick in Frederick, MD; at the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research in San Antonio;
and at the University of Texas at Galveston. A small BSL-4 facility exists on the NIH campus in
Bethesda, MD, but it is currently being operated only at a BSL-3 level for research on important
emerging infectious diseases.

4. Why is this NIAID facility needed at Fort Detrick?

Having this facility on Fort Detrick enhances NIAID efforts to expand its biodefense research agenda
by capitalizing on the already well-established cooperation between NIAID and USAMRIID scientists.
The proximity at Fort Detrick to researchers with expertise in infectious diseases related to
biodefense and other emerging infections, as well as the nearby USAMRIID facilities, will provide a
critical part of the foundation for the research and development program that is NIAID's mandate. In
addition, the location at Fort Detrick will minimize replication of costly support services. The location
for the proposed Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick was approved specifically for these
reasons.

5. What precautions are being taken to ensure the facility is safe from intrusion by outsiders?

The facility will be constructed within a secured perimeter, with the required setback distance from
any unscreened vehicles. In addition, there will be extra security for the areas of BSL-3 and BSL-4
research within the facility. New lighting, observation cameras, and card-reader systems will be
installed, and additional measures will be implemented in the BSL-3 and BSL-4 laboratories. Multiple
levels of security devices will be installed throughout the new facility.

6. What precautions are in place for transporting infectious materials to and from the
laboratories?

There are specific Government regulations for transportation of infectious materials. Infectious
materials are safely transported worldwide on a daily basis under these regulations.

7. What certification and oversight systems will be in place?

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Fort Detrick and Rocky Mountain Q&A, NIAID Fact Sheet http://web.archive.org/web/20050208095246/http:/www.niaid.nih.gov/fa...

al
process will take place before any experiment can begin in the facility.

8. Has there ever been an accident at a BSL-3 or BSL-4 facility?

No. A number of BSL-3 and BSL-4 facilities have operated safely in the United States for 30 years.
Rare accidents such as needlesticks may cause exposure of laboratory staff; immediate treatment of
any person so exposed avoids any danger to other workers or to the community.

9. Will the new facility pose any threat to the local community?

A properly constructed and properly operated BSL-3 and BSL-4 facility poses no threat to the local
community. There are no recorded incidents involving community contamination from any of the
existing BSL-3 and BSL-4 facilities.

10. Are NIAID scientists already studying potential agents of bioterrorism?

Even before the current emphasis on biodefense, NIAID scientists had been studying organisms that
cause a variety of infectious diseases. Potentially, some of these microbes also could be used as
agents of bioterrorism. Examples of diseases caused by these agents include plague, Lyme disease,
rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, West Nile virus disease, influenza, anthrax infection, Ebola virus
hemorrhagic fever, HIV, tuberculosis, transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, and Q fever. All of
this work has been carried out in either the Maryland or Montana laboratories with required safety
measures in place.

11. Will the research carried out in the new facility be kept secret?

The ultimate goal of this research program is to provide information that will guide the development of
diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines to protect civilians against agents of bioterrorism. Although
safety and security regulations will limit access to certain kinds of information, it is anticipated that the
results of all research carried out in the facility will be published and communicated in the same
manner as other NIH research results.

12. When will construction of the new facility be completed?

Preliminary planning for the facility has been completed; the project is now in design development.
An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is being prepared to address possible environmental
impacts of the project. The design should be finished within one year.

No construction can begin until the EIS process is completed. Groundbreaking is estimated to occur
in mid to late 2004. Construction may take up to two years.

13. How much will the new facility cost?

The budget includes $105 million for planning, design, construction, and related costs for the
Integrated Research Facility.

14. How many people will work in the facility?

Until the design process is complete, it is not known exactly how many persons will work in the
facility. It is estimated that approximately 100 people will staff the facility.

NIAID is a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. NIAID supports basic
and applied research to prevent, diagnose, and treat infectious and immune-mediated illnesses, including HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases,
illness from potential agents of bioterrorism, tuberculosis, malaria, autoimmune disorders, asthma and allergies.

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National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD 20892

Department of Health National Institutes of Health (NIH)

NIAID Home
and Human Services Bethesda, Maryland 20892

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Last Updated February 04, 2004 (nq)

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