Unique Ag Safety Facility Unveiled In Ohio
September 16, 2011 Tweet//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Ohio State University’s Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) has unveiled a unique, highly secure bio-containment building aimed at enhancing its nationally and internationally recognized research programs on infectious diseases of plants and animals — and further safeguarding Ohio’s $90-plus billion agricultural industry.
The $22.2 million Plant and Animal Agrosecurity Research (PAAR) Facility will enable scientists on the Wooster campus to work with infectious agents classified by federal standards at the BSL-3 (biosafety level 3) and BSL-3 Agriculture safety levels. PAAR will be the first facility in Ohio and one of only two nationally with capacity for both plant and animal research at such safety levels.
“PAAR is a unique facility that will allow Ohio State to proactively address plant and animal pests that threaten our food and green industries in Ohio,” OARDC Director Steve Slack said. “We will now be able to initiate research to provide solutions on new and emerging problems before they cause significant losses, and will be able to attract the resources necessary to develop these solutions.”
The PAAR facility is expected to significantly boost research on a number of disease organisms and pests capable of causing billions of dollars in losses to crops, trees, and livestock. These include emerald ash borer, an invasive insect that is projected to cause $3 billion in economic loss to Ohio communities over the next decade; soybean rust, a devastating disease that could jeopardize Ohio’s $1 billion a year soybean industry; and avian influenza, which threatens the state’s $93 million turkey industry.
Animal-borne diseases such as avian influenza can sicken humans as well, so the research conducted by OARDC scientists at PAAR is also expected to contribute to advancements in public health. However, no human studies will be conducted at this facility.
PAAR is also expected to enhance OARDC’s ability to attract highly competitive faculty and grants to the state. Moreover, PAAR will add to infrastructure critical for the BioHio Research Park — a project currently being developed on the Wooster campus that seeks to establish public-private business partnerships and spur job creation in the agricultural biosciences in northeast Ohio.
The new BSL-3 facility will comply with all federal regulations governing BSL-3 and BSL-3 Ag labs. It will be physically isolated and constantly monitored. Access to the area will be limited and tightly controlled. The building will be constructed to be airtight, with outgoing air filtered to trap microorganisms and prevent them from spreading into other sections of the facility or the surrounding environment.
Funding for PAAR came from state of Ohio capital funds, OARDC funds, and federal grants.
More information about the facility is available here.
Sources: Mauricio Espinoza and Steve Slack, The Ohio State University