September 19, 2023

From: Biolab Watch

To: Mayor Arreguin: mayor@berkeleyca.gov
Berkeley City Council: council@berkeleyca.gov
CC: Planning Commission: PlanningPC@berkeleyca.gov
Zoning Adjustment Board: zab@berkeleyca.gov
Former Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean: shirley.dean@sbcglobal.net
Berkeley Neighborhoods Council: bnc50@berkeleyneighborhoodscouncil.com

Dear Mayor Arreguin and Berkeley City Council:

We the undersigned are deeply concerned that Berkeley’s civic leaders are not taking necessary
precautions in siting biolabs in Berkeley. Biolabs are facilities that can house research on pre-
existing as well as novel pathogens and research on genetically engineered plants and animals,
even potentially humans. This kind of research is increasingly raising concerns for Bay Area
residents, particularly for public health and the environmental risks of potential lab leaks.
Biolab facilities should only be sited after thorough civic oversight, including ample public notice
to allow meaningful participation and due diligence in addressing both biosafety and ethical
considerations.

The City Council approved the expansion of the Bayer Laboratory site, and the construction of a
massive facility, Berkeley Commons, on one of Berkeley’s treasured natural areas, the Aquatic
Park. These approvals were done without adequate public notice or civic participation.
Additional biolab facilities already under development in the city or under consideration are
also moving forward without transparency or meaningful public input.

We are especially concerned that these facilities are being established or expanded in densely
populated areas and, importantly, where flooding, sea level rise, and earthquakes are real and
perennial threats.

Therefore, the undersigned urge the City Council to curtail further biolab development including
the northwest Berkeley Gilman St. and 700 Grayson St. proposals.

Sincerely, (email addresses suppressed)

Barbara Erickson
Lesley Emmington
Rosann Greenspan PhD
David J. Jung JD
Shirley Dean

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Dean Metzger
Gopal Dayaneni
Milton Reynolds
Stephanie Welch
Inger Acking
Melissa J. Riley
Jed Riffe
Maureen Gosling
Edda Brunner
Sandina Robbins
Lynn Feinerman
Reba Brindley
Elvira Dommisse
Emilia Ianeva PhD
Stephen Shmanske PhD
Donald O. Warrin PhD
Diane L. Beeson PhD
Steve Leikin PhD
Robert M. Gould MD President SF Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility
Andrew Kimbrell JD Director International Center for Technology Assessment
Jaydee Hanson
Dana Perls
Tina Stevens PhD
Marcy Darnovsky PhD
Katie Hasson PhD
Emily Galpern MPH
Becky McClain
Jeremy Gruber JD
Jonathan Latham PhD

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Allison K. Wilson PhD
Hans R. Herren PhD
Maria José Guazzelli
Elizabeth Bravo
Kyle Livie PhD
Sheila Tully PhD
Joan C. Ryan
Gloria J. Stevens
Cecil David Lossy
Pat Keesey Zschoche
Pete Shanks
James E. Stevens JD
Catherine Powell
Edward H. Martin MD
Patricia A. Martin JD MA
Karen Weitzel DDS
Patricia Conolly MD
Jeanne Merrill
Teri Reynolds Stevens
William A. Stevens
Marcia Kiesse
Stuart Newman PhD
Martin Robinson
Claire Bleakley
Brian Wynne PhD
Simon Fairlie
Elisabeth Bucking PhD
Bob Phelps
Steve Suppan PhD

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Anne Peterman
Jeff Kaplan
Justin Kinney PhD
Bryce Nickels PhD
Nina Goodale
Steven Goodale
Christopher Kroll
Zeida Rothman
Bernard Marszalek
Laurie Shakur

CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS:

Biolab Watch*
Biosafety Now! https://biosafetynow.org
San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility https://www.sfbaypsr.org
Our Bodies Ourselves, https://ourbodiesourselves.org
International Center for Technology Assessment https://www.icta.org
Friends of the Earth https://foe.org
Center for Genetics and Society https://www.geneticsandsociety.org
Alliance for Humane Biotechnology http://www.humanebiotech.org
Center for Food Safety, https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org
Independent Science News, https://www.independentsciencenews.org
Bioscience Resource Project, https://bioscienceresource.org
Global Justice Ecology Project, https://globaljusticeecology.org
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, https://www.iatp.org
Millennium Institute https://www.millennium-institute.org/about-us
Stop Designer Babies, https://stopdesignerbabies.org
Centro Ecológico / Brazil, https://m.centroecologico.org.br
La Red Por Una América Latina Libre de Transgénicos, http://www.rallt.org

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GE Free NZ, https://www.gefree.org.nz
GeneEthics, https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064784013939

* Biolab Watch is an informal network of concerned citizens and civil society groups that rose in
response to the enormous commercial boom of biolab development in the San Francisco Bay
Area, especially, Berkeley, California. It is dedicated to increasing transparency, oversight, civic
participation, and community involvement in the siting and operation of biolabs. Recognizing
that biotechnological safety and bioethical awareness are concerns with international
ramifications, Biolab Watch seeks to share information and initiatives with concerned parties
locally, nationally, and internationally.