The Birds of Plum Island

09-05-2012 • http://lewrockwell.com, by Lizzie Bennett

In 1994 dead bird specimens were found outside, open to air at the facility and in 1995 the Department of Agriculture was fined $111,000 for storing hazardous chemicals in an insecure fashion at the facility.

In 2000 an application was made to upgrade the facility into a bio safety level 4 centre studying human as well as animal diseases but persistent activism against this plan saw the Congress backtrack and the application was reconsidered.

Having an annual budget of more than $16,000,000 ostensibly to study foot and mouth disease, it was decided in late 2002 to transfer the facility from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Homeland Security.

Plum Island has its own fire department, water treatment plant, power plant and security and access to the island is limited to a government two ferryboat stations, one at Orient Point on Long Island and the other at Old Saybrook Connecticut.