A lawsuit could be filed as early as today claiming that political considerations led the U.S. Homeland Security Department to select Kansas as the home state for a new $450 million biodefense laboratory, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Feb. 11).
Building the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kan., would be "grossly irresponsible, the equivalent of playing Russian roulette with Mother Nature," due to the frequency of tornadoes in the state, said John Kerr, chairman of the Texas Biological and Agro-Defense Consortium.
Kerr's group, which consists of a number of research entities, promoted San Antonio as the prime location for the new facility. The organization has submitted a notice of intent to sue Homeland Security with the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. It plans to demand that the December site decision be vacated and that preparatory work halt.
The new facility is intended to take over research on biological threats such as foot-and-mouth disease and swine fever that is now conducted at the Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York.
Kerr argued that dangerous biological materials could be freed should the facility be hit by a storm similar to the tornado that packed 200 mph winds as it passed through the area in 2008.
The Kansas Bioscience Authority countered that up-to-date containment systems and safeguards would prevent any threatening material from escaping.
"The threat is not in this lab," said spokesman Chad Bettes. "It's in not having the lab close to the resources to get the best outcome."
Kerr also asserted that Homeland Security Undersecretary Jay Cohen's prior relationship with proponents of the Kansas site gave them an edge over other states in the running. Cohen made multiple trips to the Kansas location over the three-year selection period, far more attention than given to other sites, Kerr said.
A spokeswoman for Kansas Senator Pat Roberts (R) said Cohen made only one trip to the selected location, though there were visits by other DHS officials. Homeland Security Department spokesman Matt Chandler said the process was "transparent" and fair.
"Kansas played by the rules, and was chosen solely on its merits. Kansas is recognized around the globe for its animal health research expertise, state-of-the-art research and industry infrastructure, and deep agricultural heritage," said Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, the Obama administration's nominee for health and human services secretary (Michelle Roberts, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, April 22).