FLICKR, CREATIVE COMMONS, BEATRICE MURCH
After a largely negative review in 2010, the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility is back on the right track, though more progress is needed before it can officially open its doors, according to an independent National Academy of Sciences (NAS) review panel.
The facility, which would be the highest biosafety level lab in the country, has drawn criticism for its risk of releasing dangerous pathogens into the surrounding cattle-dense region of Manhattan, Kansas. Of particular concern is the release of foot and mouth disease, which can decimate cattle and other cloven-footed animals. The US Department of Homeland Security released an assessment in 2010 that, when analyzed by an independent review panel, put the risk of releasing infectious diseases like foot and mouth at 70 percent ...
