The 2012 budget submitted by the Obama Administration to Congress today includes $150 million in Department of Homeland Security funding for the next phase of the construction of the $650 million National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) in Manhattan, KS.
The NBAF will be a highly secure biosecurity level 3 and 4 facility on the Kansas State University campus where top government scientists and researchers will study of foreign animal, emerging and zoonotic (transmitted from animals to humans) diseases that threaten the U.S. animal agriculture and public health.
The NBAF will provide and strengthen our nation with critical capabilities to conduct research, develop vaccines and other countermeasures, and train veterinarians in preparedness and response against these diseases.The nation’s premier biodefense facility is expected to be a major driver of economic development in the area including Manhattan, KS and Kansas State University.
Starting with the construction of the $650 million facility and continuing with the ongoing employment of a highly educated workforce, NBAF’s economic impact on Kansas is estimated at up to $3.5 billion in the first 20 years of the facility’s use. Additionally, NBAF will serve as a magnet for private industry, attracting new jobs as private biotechnology companies, professionals, and support infrastructure aligns to capitalize on the concentration of animal health and plant science assets in the state.
The NBAF is replacing an antiquated facility on Plum Island in New York and will serve as the nation’s premier research center for combating agriculture’s vulnerability to naturally occurring diseases or agro-terrorism.
