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The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) will be a state-of-the-art, biocontainment laboratory for the study of diseases that threaten both America’s animal agricultural industry and public health. NBAF will strengthen the nation’s ability to conduct research, develop vaccines, diagnose emerging diseases, and train veterinarians.
The United States currently does not have a laboratory facility with maximum biocontainment (BSL-4) space to study high-consequence zoonotic diseases affecting large livestock. NBAF will be the first laboratory facility in the U.S. to provide BSL-4 laboratories capable of housing cattle and other large livestock.
Animal disease research, diagnostics and training are currently performed at the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC). However, the aging facility is nearing the end of its lifecycle and does not have the capability to meet research needs in relation to emerging and foreign animal disease threats. The federal government is developing a plan to provide a seamless transition from PIADC to the NBAF that includes an overlap of operations to make certain there is no interruption of the critical science mission and operational capabilities.
NBAF will be constructed and operated on a secure, federally-owned site on the northwest corner of the Kansas State University (KSU). The laboratory’s critical systems will include redundant safety and biocontainment features. In the case of a tornado, the facility’s biocontainment areas are designed to a standard similar to that applied in the nuclear industry for structural and containment integrity.
Construction activities are underway, facility commissioning will be completed in May 2021, and the facility will be fully operational in December 2022. Current operations at PIADC will continue until the mission is transitioned to the NBAF in 2023.
September 24, 2020/ USDA/ United States.
https://www.usda.gov
