NBAF Vital to Quelling Bio and Agro Terrorism Threats

The threat to the United States in regards to bioterrorism is a much graver threat than from weapons of a non-biological nature. The extent to which such an attack can harm such a large portion of the population of this country is unthinkably severe. Biological and chemical weapons are two of the most feared and underused weapons of modern warfare. So dangerous are these two methods, that the Geneva Convention prohibited there use. Therefore, terrorists that do not abide by the rules of war anyway, are more apt to use them.

This country has been very fortunate to have avoided such a biological outbreak in the past. Kansas is an agriculture state that is particularly vulnerable to such an attack. With 6.6 million head of cattle, any biological agent that is released into a Kansas feedlot that causes an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease could be devastating to the livestock industry. This would immediately impact export abilities after thousands or millions of head of cattle would be lost. This would cause long term economic determent to the U.S. which terrorists know impacts our ability to remain a world superpower. A perfect example of this would be the 2001 outbreak of FMD in the United Kingdom from which their economy is still suffering from.

I believe it is imperative that the National Bio and Agro-defense Facility being constructed in Manhattan continue. We should support any lobbing efforts to secure funding from Congress for this facility. Yes, there are some who are reticent about having such a facility so close to Kansas State University and Manhattan, Kansas because of the potential danger of an accident which could cause an outbreak of biological agents. However, the threat from such an outbreak occurring in the state and nation from bioterrorism is much graver and likely than any possibility that a safeguarded facility such as NBAF could potentially be compromised. Kansas was chosen for the site of NBAF for several reasons. The close proximity to Ft. Riley was a major factor in addition to the protected geographical location. Because Kansas is the geographical center of the U.S., it is least vulnerable from overseas missile attacks that could target the facility from the shores of other continents. No, the fact that NBAF is positioned in the middle of a community surrounded by agriculture research facilities is not a positive aspect. However, the national security risks that it would help mitigate trumps the risks associated with its location.