by Michael Howell
Dr. Marshall Bloom, Associate Director of Science Management at Rocky Mountain Laboratory (RML) in Hamilton, recently delivered an end of the year update to the Ravalli County Commissioners regarding the RML Master Plan, the laboratory’s noise guidelines and monitoring program, damages and remediation efforts following an August 23 windstorm, and new and ongoing building construction.
He began with some photographs from the 1960s and 1970s showing the laboratory grounds surrounded by agricultural land to the north and south and followed up with a recent photograph showing the extent of residential development now surrounding the grounds. He noted that the Master Plan adopted in 2009 remained basically unchanged in the revised plan adopted in 2015, but the time has come to review the plan and make whatever changes may be required.
According to Bloom, the production of a master plan is deliberate and typically occurs over multiple years. He said the process involves setting goals, collecting and analyzing data, reviewing planning principles and developing concepts. It also involves issuing a draft plan and environmental analysis or even an Environmental Impact Statement before a final plan is adopted. Public comment is sought and considered throughout the process. They have been working on one now for well over a year. The existing plan is available for public review upon request.
He said in 2003 he recognized that the laboratory was situated in a residential area and should probably adopt some noise criteria “that probably ought to be as strict as anything in the state of Montana.” They consulted with acoustic scientist John Connolly of Big Sky Acoustics and adopted a daytime standard of 55 decibels from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and a nighttime criteria of 50 decibels from 7p.m. to 7 a.m. for steady ambient sound.
“This accounts for the steady noise that you would hear,” said Bloom, “not a backhoe or a vehicle backing up or construction traffic, but steady noise levels on a normal day.”
A set of over a dozen acoustic monitoring stations was set up around the perimeter of the campus grounds as well as a few out in the community along Desta and Montana streets to measure the sound levels.
In 2003, all the stations fell below the standards set, but after the recent construction of a new building the levels fell even lower at most of the stations. Bloom attributed the drop in noise levels to the design of the ventilation systems installed in the new building. The system is checked once or twice a year and any problems with old ventilation systems on the older buildings are addressed to bring the levels back down. Bloom said the three things that they hear about are noise, lights and traffic, and all those things are being addressed in the new Master Plan.
Bloom said that during a severe windstorm this summer on August 23, a legacy Ponderosa pine on campus toppled and crashed into one of the houses on campus, damaging the porch and a nearby fence. Nobody was in the building at the time, and nobody was injured. The building was condemned until repairs could be made and the building made safe for use. The fencing damage was repaired immediately after the storm. The home was originally used to house the Director of the laboratory but no one lives in the house now due to security concerns and it is currently used for offices.
“When this happened, we realized we needed to look at other big trees on campus and assess their health and stability,” said Bloom. As a result, one large pine estimated to weigh about 50 tons was identified for removal and a few others will be topped.
A “cookie” was cut out of the trunk of the large tree that was blown over and is being dried and polished and the rings will be counted and a timeline established for events that occurred during the tree’s lifetime. It is estimated that the tree is between 150 to 200 years old.
“What we will be able to do is mark WWI and WWII as well as the bombings of September 11,” said Bloom. “We will mark the time that Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever was identified and discovery of Lyme disease at the lab and other such things and place it in the visitor center as an historical exhibit.”
A new building to house the animals used in research at the lab has been constructed but the animals have not yet moved in because they need to be sure that the autoclaves, cage washing and drying machines are all working properly.
Another building is currently under construction that will house what Bloom calls a “world class microscopy program” that uses electron microscopes and other equipment that is currently spread around the campus. Some of the electron microscopes are over two stories high so the new building will have a basement to help accommodate the equipment.
The windows in the new building will be like “reverse sunglasses and, instead of blocking light coming in, will block the light from going out so the building doesn’t shine like a beacon in the night,” according to Bloom. The construction is expected to be completed in 2027.