Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory opened a research facility to study pathogens on Monday after a report deemed it safe to study anthrax and other infectious diseases.

The facility, which is partly managed by the university, will operate at the highest security level seen by the lab due to the nature of research. The security level is set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"The U.S. Department of Energy has determined the probability of a successful terrorist attack on the Biosafety Level 3 facility is extremely low," Livermore Site Office Manager Camille Yuan-Soo Hoo said in a statement.

Yet Tri-Valley CAREs, an anti-nuclear development community group based in Livermore, has scrutinized the department for what they said was a safety hazard for the lab's surrounding communities, including Berkeley.

"My biggest concern is the health and safety of the community surrounding Livermore Lab," said Marylia Kelley, executive director of Tri-Valley CAREs. "In the event of an accident, leak, spill or terrorist attack, this facility puts our lives at risk."

The university was the sole manager of the lab until Oct. 1, when the security group Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC-which includes the university-took over as manager.

Tri-Valley CAREs sued the department in August 2003, and the case was heard in 2006 by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ordered the department to reassess the facility's safety.

The laboratory was fined in September 2007 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for releasing anthrax during a shipment in September 2005, among other alleged violations.

Tri-Valley CAREs officials said they plan to seek an injunction against the department to postpone operations at the research facility.

Officials at the national lab and the department could not be reached for comment on the issue.

A final assessment of the facility was approved and released on Monday, according to a statement by the department's National Nuclear Security Administration.

Kelley said that although the materials outlining the impact of the facility were released this week, the department opened the site without hearing public comment on the revised documents.

"It's so wrong to do something potentially deadly with such a poor process with little public input," she said.

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