500,000 sq. ft. Bio-Terrorism Research Facility

[tim2462]

Not much info is available yet, but the Homeland Security Dept. is building a 500,000 sq, ft, Bio-Terrorism

Research Facility, and Arkansas is one of two states being considered for the project. The other state was not named in the report I saw on Fox 16. They are supposed to decide in August where it will be built.

[Mith242]

Interesting news Tim. Any ideas where in Arkansas it could be built? Or ar they just narrowing it down to a particular state before they settle on a particular city or something?

[skirby]

Not much info is available yet, but the Homeland Security Dept. is building a 500,000 sq, ft, Bio-Terrorism

Research Facility, and Arkansas is one of two states being considered for the project. The other state was not named in the report I saw on Fox 16. They are supposed to decide in August where it will be built.

This project has already been mentioned under the Pine Bluff topic. The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility to replace the Plum Island Facility. "Pine Bluff is trying to become home for the proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility. The $500 million project would bring about 400 jobs to the area. Officials from the National Center for Toxicological Research Center, UAPB,UAMS,UALR, ASU and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are working together to get the project." LR stations have a habit of making old news into new news. Texas A&M is also working to get the project. The deadline was March 31st for the filing of interest forms.

[Mith242]

This project has already been mentioned under the Pine Bluff topic. The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility to replace the Plum Island Facility. "Pine Bluff is trying to become home for the proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility. The $500 million project would bring about 400 jobs to the area. Officials from the National Center for Toxicological Research Center, UAPB,UAMS,UALR, ASU and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are working together to get the project." LR stations have a habit of making old news into new news. Texas A&M is also working to get the project. The deadline was March 31st for the filing of interest forms.

I was wondering if this might have something to do with the NCTR/Arsenal.

[tim2462]

Actually, I don't think this is the same thing. This is the Homeland Securty Dept. planning this. But, they didn't say much about it, so I'm not sure. It has something to do with terrorism by poisoning our food supply. It has nothing to do with cheimal weapons.

[skirby]

Actually, I don't think this is the same thing. This is the Homeland Securty Dept. planning this. But, they didn't say much about it, so I'm not sure. It has something to do with terrorism by poisoning our food supply. It has nothing to do with cheimal weapons.

It is the same project. The National Center for Toxicological Research Center (located in Pine Bluff) is run by the FDA. The FDA is responsible for food safety in the U.S. The NCTRC and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are two seperate government projects.

[CentralArkansas]

It is the same project. The National Center for Toxicological Research Center (located in Pine Bluff) is run by the FDA. The FDA is responsible for food safety in the U.S. The NCTRC and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are two seperate government projects.

Why the feds want to stick this in Pine Bluff is beyond me. The only two areas in this state that should be considered is Little Rock and the Fayetteville area. Other than that, how in the hell do you expect to attract the type of minds you need at that facility to an area like PB? Beyond that, you have a wealth of talent in Little Rock at UAMS and in Fayetteville at the UA.

[Mith242]

It is the same project. The National Center for Toxicological Research Center (located in Pine Bluff) is run by the FDA. The FDA is responsible for food safety in the U.S. The NCTRC and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are two seperate government projects.

Sorry I didn't mean to imply they were the same. I meant it more as a it having something to do with one or the other.

[skirby]

Why the feds want to stick this in Pine Bluff is beyond me. The only two areas in this state that should be considered is Little Rock and the Fayetteville area. Other than that, how in the hell do you expect to attract the type of minds you need at that facility to an area like PB? Beyond that, you have a wealth of talent in Little Rock at UAMS and in Fayetteville at the UA.

The Area being considered is in Jefferson, AR. The NCTRC is located there on 496 acres and has 35 buildings with over one million square feet. There are 600 employees with many of them living in LR. "NCTR is an easy 40-minute commute from Little Rock on a four-lane, low-traffic interstate. Many NCTR employees make the daily commute either on an employee-sponsored bus that runs to and from the Center each day or in their own vehicles. Car pooling also is popular."(from the NCTR website). CentralArkansas are you saying the employees that work at the NCTR have subpar minds because of its location? The purpose of the NCTR is "The Center conducts research through the dedicated efforts of staff in eight divisions. The NCTR Research Divisions are committed to the study of biochemical and molecular markers of cancer, nutritional modulation of risk and toxicity, developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, quantitative risk assessment, transgenics, applied and environmental microbiology, and solid-state toxicity. Each division works closely with the others in a seamless effort to support the FDA's mission to bring safe and efficacious products to the market rapidly and to reduce the risk of adverse health effects from products on the market."

[sleepy]

CentralArkansas are you saying the employees that work at the NCTR have subpar minds because of its location? The purpose of the NCTR is "The Center conducts research through the dedicated efforts of staff in eight divisions. The NCTR Research Divisions are committed to the study of biochemical and molecular markers of cancer, nutritional modulation of risk and toxicity, developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, quantitative risk assessment, transgenics, applied and environmental microbiology, and solid-state toxicity. Each division works closely with the others in a seamless effort to support the FDA's mission to bring safe and efficacious products to the market rapidly and to reduce the risk of adverse health effects from products on the market."

I would say scientists would be happy to work at that facility in Pine Bluff. They go where the science takes them, and a federal research lab would be a plum job anywhere.

[Aporkalypse]

It is the same project. The National Center for Toxicological Research Center (located in Pine Bluff) is run by the FDA. The FDA is responsible for food safety in the U.S. The NCTRC and the Pine Bluff Arsenal are two seperate government projects.

True and untrue. NCTR at its inception was a secret facility and a lot of the experiments done there were to evaluate various chemical weapons' effects on humans via rodent and even primate models (they still have the only primate lab in Arkansas). This is why it was built where it is, you could never find that place unless you knew it was there. It was built there because PB was chosen not only for weapons storage but also for research. Now NCTR is under FDA jurisdiction and is their #2 facility after the main one in Bethesda, MD.

Most of the NCTR scientists with their own labs are adjunct faculty at UAMS in the Pharmacology and Toxicology department. The International Conference on Neurotoxicology is usually held in AR because of the power of the NCTR group. Now most of these professionals live in LR instead of Pine Bluff but the lower tier jobs contribute to the PB economy.

[CentralArkansas]

CentralArkansas are you saying the employees that work at the NCTR have subpar minds because of its location?

No, I said that it won't be as easy to attract employees to Pine Bluff than it would to attract them to Little Rock or NWA. Scientists are people too, and even though they will follow the science, they also enjoy a good quality of life.

It's no secret there aren't many molecular biologists or pharmacologists being cultivated in Pine Bluff.

[tim2462]

Jefferson is exit 24 off of 530, so it would only take about 20 minutes at most to get from I-30 in Little Rock to that exit. So, it'd be easy for people to commute from Little Rock.

[Aporkalypse]

Jefferson is exit 24 off of 530, so it would only take about 20 minutes at most to get from I-30 in Little Rock to that exit. So, it'd be easy for people to commute from Little Rock.

It's at least 10 min after that exit to NCTR, though.

[Mith242]

Jefferson is exit 24 off of 530, so it would only take about 20 minutes at most to get from I-30 in Little Rock to that exit. So, it'd be easy for people to commute from Little Rock.

I think that's happening a lot more now. When I lived down there years ago most of them lived in White Hall just northwest of Pine Bluff. But I do think you're seeing more of them live closer to Little Rock nowadays.