Editing Biosafety level (section)

== History ==
The first prototype Class III (maximum containment) [[biosafety cabinet]] was fashioned in 1943 by Hubert Kaempf Jr., then a U.S. Army soldier, under the direction of Arnold G. Wedum, Director (1944–1969) of Industrial Health and Safety at the [[United States Army Biological Warfare Laboratories]], [[Camp Detrick]], [[Maryland]]. Kaempf was tired of his [[military police|MP]] duties at Detrick and was able to transfer to the sheet metal department working with the contractor, the H.K. Ferguson Co.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Covt |first=Norman M. |date=1997 |url=http://www.detrick.army.mil/cutting_edge/index.cfm |title=A History of Fort Detrick, Maryland |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922133111/http://www.detrick.army.mil/cutting_edge/index.cfm |archive-date=2008-09-22 }}, 3rd edition. Kaempf retired from Fort Detrick in 1994, having completed more than 50 years service. He was chief of the mechanical branch, Directorate of Engineering and Housing.</ref>

On 18 April 1955, fourteen representatives met at Camp Detrick in Frederick, Maryland. The meeting was to share knowledge and experiences regarding [[biosafety]], chemical, radiological, and industrial safety issues that were common to the operations at the three principal biological warfare (BW) laboratories of the U.S. Army.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.absa.org/abohist1.html|title=A History of the American Biological Safety Association|access-date=2008-08-14|author=Manuel S. Barbeito|author2=Richard H. Kruse|publisher=American Biological Safety Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080620063212/http://www.absa.org/abohist1.html|archive-date=2008-06-20|url-status=dead}}</ref> Because of the potential implication of the work conducted at biological warfare laboratories, the conferences were restricted to top level [[security clearance]]s. Beginning in 1957, these conferences were planned to include non-classified sessions as well as classified sessions to enable broader sharing of biological safety information. It was not until 1964, however, that conferences were held in a government installation not associated with a biological warfare program.<ref name="USDA-ABSA">{{cite web| url = http://riley.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=8&tax_level=4&tax_subject=158&topic_id=1982&level3_id=6419&level4_id=10967&level5_id=0&placement_default=0&test| title = American Biological Safety Association Collection : NAL Collections : National Agricultural Library| access-date= 2009-02-11| date = 2009-02-11| publisher = United States Department of Agriculture: National Agricultural Library| url-status = dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090227023644/http://riley.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=8&tax_level=4&tax_subject=158&topic_id=1982&level3_id=6419&level4_id=10967&level5_id=0&placement_default=0&test| archive-date = 2009-02-27}}</ref>

Over the next ten years, the biological safety conferences grew to include representatives from all federal agencies that sponsored or conducted research with pathogenic microorganisms. By 1966, it began to include representatives from universities, private laboratories, hospitals, and industrial complexes. Throughout the 1970s, participation in the conferences continued to expand and by 1983 discussions began regarding the creation of a formal organization.<ref name="USDA-ABSA" /> The [[American Biological Safety Association]] (ABSA) was officially established in 1984 and a constitution and bylaws were drafted the same year. As of 2008, ABSA includes some 1,600 members in its professional association.<ref name="USDA-ABSA" />

In 1977, Jim Peacock of the [[Australian Academy of Science]] asked Bill Snowdon, then chief of the [[CSIRO]]'s [[Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness|Australian Animal Health Laboratory]] (AAHL) if he could have the newly released United States' [[National Institutes of Health]] and the British equivalent requirements for the development of infrastructure for bio-containment reviewed by AAHL personnel with a view to recommending the adoption of one of them by Australian authorities. The review was carried out by CSIRO AAHL Project Manager Bill Curnow and CSIRO Engineer Arthur Jenkins. They drafted outcomes for each of the levels of security. AAHL was notionally classified as "substantially beyond P4". These were adopted by the Australian Academy of Science and became the basis for Australian legislation. It opened in 1985 costing AU$185&nbsp;million, built on [[Corio Oval]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.csiro.au/en/Organisation-Structure/National-Facilities/Australian-Animal-Health-Laboratory.aspx|title=CSIRO: Geelong – Australian Animal Health Laboratory}}</ref> The [[Australian Animal Health Laboratory]] is a Class 4/ P4 Laboratory.<ref name="Lowenthal2016">{{cite journal |last1=Lowenthal |first1=John |title=Overview of the CSIRO Australian Animal Health Laboratory |journal=Journal of Infection and Public Health |date=May 2016 |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=236–239 |doi=10.1016/j.jiph.2016.04.007 |pmid=27118215 |pmc=7102798 }}</ref><ref name="Racaniello2014"/>

In 2003, the [[Chinese Academy of Sciences]] approved the construction of mainland China's first BSL-4 laboratory at the [[Wuhan Institute of Virology]] (WIV). In 2014, the WIV's National Bio-safety Laboratory was built at a cost of 300 million yuan (US$44&nbsp;million), in collaboration and with assistance from the [[French government]]'s [[Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie|CIRI lab]].<ref name=inwiv>{{cite news |title=Inside the Wuhan lab: French engineering, deadly viruses and a big mystery |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/wuhan-lab-covid-china/2021/09/07/f293325c-fb11-11eb-911c-524bc8b68f17_story.html |newspaper=Washington Post }}</ref><ref name=pmid28230144>{{cite journal |last1=Cyranoski |first1=David |title=Inside the Chinese lab poised to study world's most dangerous pathogens |journal=Nature |date=23 February 2017 |volume=542 |issue=7642 |pages=399–400 |doi=10.1038/nature.2017.21487 |pmid=28230144 |bibcode=2017Natur.542..399C |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name=augur>{{cite web |title=China Inaugurates the First Biocontainment Level 4 Laboratory in Wuhan |date=3 February 2015 |publisher=Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences |url=http://english.whiov.cas.cn/News/Events/201502/t20150203_135923.html |access-date=9 April 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303215545/http://english.whiov.cas.cn/News/Events/201502/t20150203_135923.html |archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref>

In 2007 a scientific review paper stated that the [[Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health]], which was designed in the early 1990s, "has become the prototype for modern BSL4 laboratories".<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1086/520539 |title=Dedication: Jim Orzechowski (1944–2003) and Michael Kiley (1942–2004) |year=2007 |last1=Feldmann |first1=Heinz |last2=Geisbert |first2=Thomas |last3=Kawaoka |first3=Yoshihiro |last4=Johnson |first4=Karl M. |journal=The Journal of Infectious Diseases |volume=196 |pages=S127–S128 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Starting with the 2020 [[COVID-19]] pandemic near the facilities of the WIV, work in biocontainment facilities has been politicized, especially in the [[US Senate]] for example as the result of [[Rand Paul]]'s work.<ref name="forrp">{{cite news |title=JUST IN: Rand Paul Asks Samantha Power: 'Did USAID Fund Coronavirus Research In Wuhan China?' |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkfaXm56mdU |agency=YouTube |publisher=Forbes Breaking News |date=26 April 2023}}</ref> Russia asked questions on 25 October 2022 in the [[United Nations]] over the presence in Ukraine of biolabs.<ref name="apeml">{{cite news |last1=LEDERER |first1=EDITH M. |title=Russia seeks UN probe of claims on Ukraine biological labs |url=https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-united-states-nations-biological-weapons-a782591e10eae1530671500710c0b79f |publisher=The Associated Press |date=25 October 2022}}</ref> In April 2023, [[Sudan]]'s descent into civil war caused worries at the [[World Health Organization]] over its [[National Public Health Laboratory (Sudan)|National Public Laboratory]] as contending factions battled over its area and NPL staff were kicked out in favor of installing a military base at its premises.<ref name="jhbbc">{{cite news |last1=Horton |first1=Jake |title=Sudan crisis: WHO warns of biological hazard at seized lab |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-65390285 |publisher=BBC |date=26 April 2023}}</ref> At the time, the facility contained organisms rated at BSL-2.<ref name="dwfox">{{cite news |last1=Wallace |first1=Danielle |title=WHO official warns of 'high risk of biological hazard' in Sudan after fighters seize laboratory: reports |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/who-official-warns-high-risk-biological-hazard-sudan-fighters-seize-laboratory-reports |publisher=FOX News Network, LLC |date=25 April 2023}}</ref>