Opponents of the proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Athens will meet tonight to discuss the proliferation of such facilities in the country.

For Athens Quality-of-Life, a nonprofit organization created by Athens residents in 2007, is sponsoring the meeting to increase public debate about the potential drawbacks to NBAF. The featured speaker, Edward Hammond, is director of the U.S. Office of the Sunshine Project. The project was founded in 1999 as a watchdog agency in opposition to biological warfare.

The proposed facility that Athens Quality-of-Life opposes will specialize in researching the prevention of natural and intentionally-released infectious diseases in humans and agriculture. According to plans, NBAF will span 500,000 square feet on South Milledge Avenue, if the site is selected by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The final site selection will be announced in October 2008.

The University is one of four finalists competing for the facility. Sites in Mississippi, Kansas and Texas are also being considered. A site in North Carolina decided to withdraw its location from consideration, the Athens Banner-Herald reported.

Hammond will speak at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education on “Germs, Weapons and Secrets: the Proliferation of Bio-Defense Labs in the United States,” at 7 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.