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SCP-6790 Unknown ~ medium confidence
SCP-6790
Expected annual
$823K
One-time setup
$324K
Annual recurring
$749K
Personnel
4
Initial one-time setup is moderate (~$324k) driven by lab instrumentation and secure containment installation; recurring annual costs are substantial (~$749k/yr) driven mainly by research staff wages and an ongoing R&D program, with contingency, logistics and legal costs able to push totals much higher during incidents.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $324K
Initial Research And Lab Setup $240K
[#7, #8, #11] Purchase/upgrades for high-resolution analytical instrumentation (GC-MS/LC-MS/HPLC) and sample-preparation equipment (glovebox, fumehoods). NMR purchase not included in baseline (outsourcing expected) — NMR mapped but set to zero for one-time capital in baseline.
Equipment $66K
[#1, #2, #3, #17, #25, #13] Purchase of reinforced safe and integrated sensors, environmental monitoring hardware, CCTV and secure storage hardware, audio/video kit, LIMS/evidence-tracking software (one-time license/customization), and kennel hardware/equipment.
Facilities $10K
[#1] Structural/installation work for secure locker and minor secure-wing modifications for containment locker installation.
Personnel Vetting One Time $8K
[#4] One-time background checks/clearance costs for Level-3 personnel (assumes vetting for a small set of authorized staff).
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $749K/yr
Staff Wages $265K/yr
[#5, #9, #14] Salaries for research staff (senior + junior chemists/toxicologists), animal handler(s), and an incremental security officer for containment.
Research And Monitoring $250K/yr
[#7, #8, #18, #19] Ongoing instrument service contracts/operating costs, sequencing/bioinformatics runs, and baseline multi-year R&D budget for attempts at reversal/antidote (small-program baseline). NMR analyses assumed outsourced when needed.
Contingency Reserve $100K/yr
[#22, #30] Reserve fund for rapid-response deployments, major containment incidents, or sudden legal/political expenses (recommended 10–30% of program).
Logistics And Transport $30K/yr
[#6, #21, #22] Evidence transport, secured transfers, and occasional field retrieval operations; routine incident logistics budget (does not include contingency reserve for large deployments).
Cover Story And Legal $25K/yr
[#20, #24] Ongoing legal counsel, cover-story/diplomatic management, insurance/indemnity budgeting and liaison costs with local authorities.
Facilities Maintenance $21K/yr
[#2, #3, #11, #13, #25, #26] Maintenance and calibration for environmental sensors, CCTV/storage upkeep, sample-prep equipment service, kennel upkeep, LIMS/software maintenance, and pro rata utilities/energy.
Outsourced Specialized Analyses $20K/yr
[#28] Contracted analyses and specialized assays (to academic partners/CROs) when internal capability insufficient.
Supplies And Consumables $18K/yr
[#10, #12, #15] Chemical consumables (solvents, columns, standards), PPE replacement and training refreshers, and food/bedding/enrichment consumables for SCP-6790-1.
Behavioral Interviews $6K/yr
[#16] Bi-weekly interviews and psychological assessments for SCP-6790-1 (therapist/analyst time, recording/transcription).
Training And Drills $5K/yr
[#27] Regular tabletop and practical drills, overtime and external trainer costs.
Psychological Care $5K/yr
[#29] Counseling, debriefs and monitoring for personnel exposed to anomalous human-to-duck research.
Personnel Reinvestigation $2K/yr
[#4] Annual reinvestigations, periodic polygraphs and vetting refreshers for Level-3 personnel (per-person recurring costs aggregated).
Hazardous Waste Disposal $2K/yr
[#23] Incineration and hazardous-waste handling for contaminated PPE and consumables.
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $749K/yr
80.0% probability / year
Normal year with single contained powder and one duck, routine research, maintenance, and modest field activity.
no breach no major field incident only routine research activity
🚨 Minor Incident $799K/yr
12.0% probability / year +$50K vs baseline
Small containment incident or localized public discovery requiring a targeted MTF deployment, additional evidence handling and short-term legal/PR work.
localized public exposure small field retrieval targeted MTF/PR response
🚨 Major Breach $1.5M/yr
3.0% probability / year +$750K vs baseline
Significant public exposure or containment breach requiring large-scale MTF deployment, legal settlements, large-scale amnesticization and major PR/cover-up operations.
public scandal multiple uncontrolled instances high-profile political exposure
🚨 Research Scaleup $1.6M/yr
5.0% probability / year +$900K vs baseline
Deliberate scale-up year for active reversal research: capital purchase of high-end instrumentation (e.g., NMR) plus expanded staffing and campaign-level assays.
decision to purchase on-site NMR major expansion of medicinal chemistry program multi-year in-house reversal campaign
👥 Personnel 4 total
Role Count Notes
Research Scientist 2 Senior and junior chemist/toxicologist positions responsible for analytical work and R&D; salaries included in staff_wages.
Animal Handler / Keeper 1 Daily husbandry and enrichment for SCP-6790-1; salary included in staff_wages.
Security Officer / MTF Agent 1 Incremental security presence for secure zone and evidence locker; salary included in staff_wages.
📋 Confidence Notes
Analyst notes provide many explicit line-item ranges enabling a reasoned baseline; uncertainty remains around policy choices (outsourcing vs purchase of NMR), scope of R&D, and political/legal exposure which drive larger variance.
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