Archive of BERAC Reports

Report to the Biological and Environmental Advisory Committee (BERAC) by the Committee of Visitors for the Review of the Life Sciences Division, a report approved December 2005 (in response to the charge dated November 18, 2004. BER response to the COV report.

Recommendations on the DOE Terrestrial Carbon Cycle Research Program, a report prepared December 2005 (in response to the charge dated April 18, 2005)

Report of the Subcommittee on the BERAC Charge in Regard to Synchrotron Structural Biology Resources, a report prepared October 2005 (in response to the charge dated January 14, 2005)

Report on Planning and Development of the GTL-1 Facility and Further Consideration of GTL Facilities 2, 3, and 4, a report prepared October 7, 2005 (in response to the Charge dated August 15, 2005)

Advice on the Mission, Operation, and Future Plans of the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a report prepared October 7, 2005 (in response to the Charge dated November 18, 2004)

The Need for Enhanced Research on Cloud Parameterization Methods and Abrupt Climate Change, a report prepared April 2005, (in response to the Charge dated April 21, 2004)

Letter Report of the Biological and Environmental Research Advisory Committee on Long Term Performance Goals for the Office of Biological and Environmental Research, a report prepared January 6, 2005 (in response to the Charge dated April 21, 2004)

Report on Potential Scientific Impact and Design Considerations and Objectives for the Proposed Facility for the Production of Proteins and Molecular Tags (GTL-1), a report prepared December 2004 (in response to the Charge dated September 23, 2004)

Synthetic Genomes: Technologies and Impact, a report prepared December 2004 (in response to the remarks made by the Secretary of Energy, Spencer Abraham on November 13, 2003)

Committee of Visitors for the Review of the Environmental Remediation Sciences Division, a report prepared November 2004, and approved by BERAC in December 2004, (in response to the Charge dated April 21, 2004). BER response to the COV report.

Report to the Biological and Environmental Research Advisory Committee (BERAC) Committee of Visitors for Climate Change Research Division, a report prepared November 2004, and approved by BERAC in December 2004, in response to the Charge dated July 23, 2003). BER response to the COV report.

Need for a Subsurface Geosciences Laboratory as proposed by the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory a report prepared April 2004 (in response to the Charge dated July 23, 2003)

Need for Additional Field Research Sites for Environmental Remediation Research, a report prepared April 2004 (in response to the Charge dated July 23, 2003)

Radiopharmaceutical Development and the Office of Science, a report prepared April 2004 (in response to the Charge dated December 4, 2002)

A Reconfigured Atmospheric Science Program, a report prepared April 2004 (in response to the Charge dated July 23, 2003)

Report on the Access Use of Synchrotron X-Radiation for Research in Structural Molecular Biology, dated April 2003, (in response to the Charges of April 30, 2001, and January 9, 2003)

An Evaluation of the Biosphere 2 Center as a National Scientific User Facility, a report prepared March 2003

Report on the Biological and Environmental Research Advisory Committee's Consideration of the Genomes to Life Facilities Plan, presented to Dr. Ray Orbach on March 18, 2003, (in response to the Charge of December 18, 2002)

Review of the U.S. Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM)-Unmanned Aerospace Vehicle (UAV) Program, a report prepared December 2002

An Evaluation of the Department of Energy's Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) Experiments as Scientific User Facilities, a report prepared December 2002

As part of an ongoing BERAC review of the Natural and Accelerated Bioremediation Research (NABIR) program, the Bacterial Transport Element of the NABIR program was reviewed on October 10-11, 2000, by a BERAC working group. The working group's findings were presented to BERAC at the Dec. 11-12, 2000, meeting and were approved. The NABIR Strategic Plan and the NABIR Element entitled Bioremediation and its Societal Implications and Concerns (BASIC) were reviewed on June 21-22, 2001. Research projects at the NABIR Field Research Center and the Biomolecular Science and Engineering Element were reviewed on October 8-9, 2001. All four of these reports were presented to BERAC at the Nov. 27-28, 2001, meeting and approved. In addition, the Biotransformation and Biogeochemistry Elements were reviewed on May 7-8, 2002, and the Uranium Mill Tailing Remedial Actions Sites and the Community Dynamics and Microbial Ecology Element were reviewed on November 7-8, 2002.

Global Change Research Programs at the U.S. Department of Energy, a report prepared May 2001

An Assessment of the Current State of the Biological and Environmental Research (BER) Portfolio, a report prepared March 2001 (in response to the Charge dated December 8, 2000)

This report, Bringing the Genome to Life: Energy Related Biology in the Post Genomic World, contains the BERAC findings and recommendations based upon the subcommittee's evaluation of new opportunities for many of the biological elements of the BER program. (in response to the Charge of November 24, 1999)

Report of the BERAC subcommittee on Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) Clinical Trials. (in response to the BNCT Charge of November 5, 1998)

This report contains the BERAC findings and recommendations based upon the subcommittee's evaluation of means for maximizing access to synchrotron light sources by the national protein crystallography community. The study was carried out in response to a request from a Federal Interagency Working Group addressing access issues. (in response to the Structural Biology Charge of May 28, 1998)

This report contains a 10-year program plan for the Low Dose Radiation Research Program prepared by the BERAC Low Dose Subcommittee. (in response to the Low Dose Radiation Research Program Charge of April 23, 1998)

This report contains the BERAC findings and recommendations based upon the subcommittee's evaluation of progress in addressing the advisory committee's 1992 and 1995 recomendations concerning the OBER structural biology program and its assessment of priorities for instrumentation, computational, and biological research; and synchrotron, neutron beam, nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry user facility development and operation for structural biology. (in response to the Stuctural Biology Charge of June 10, 1997)