Topeka ? State officials Monday put on a full-court press to rebut a federal government report that questioned locating in Kansas a $650 million laboratory for research on dangerous, infectious pathogens.

The state’s congressional delegation and Gov. Mark Parkinson all denounced the General Accountability Office draft report that said the decision to put the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan was based on a flawed study conducted by the Department of Homeland Security and wasn’t “scientifically defensible.”

The GAO report said an accidental release of dangerous animal diseases in Kansas — or anywhere on the mainland — would have drastic consequences that Homeland Security underestimated.

Homeland Security officials have stood by their assessment of the risks and their choice of Manhattan for NBAF. The new GAO report comes out at a crucial time, as Congress is battling over funding the proposed facility.

Tom Thornton, president of the Kansas Bioscience Authority, said the GAO report was the faulty one. He said modern safeguards have allowed research on dangerous stuff to be done for years in populated areas.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta “studies some of the most dangerous human diseases, such as Ebola and swine flu, and has done so safely for decades in a major metropolitan area. That is not on an island, where collaboration and infrastructure are limited,” he said.

He said the GAO’s arguments were “a tad surreal.” He said it was like being asked if man could safely land on the moon, when it has already happened.

The House Energy and Commerce subcommittee plans a meeting Thursday to hear about the GAO report and response from Homeland Security.

The Kansas congressional delegation put out a news release saying Kansas won NBAF fair and square, on the merits after a six-year selection process against numerous other states.

“Manhattan, Kansas, is the center of plant and animal research worldwide with the expertise and experience to be the best and safest research lab in the world,” the statement said.

While in Lawrence on Monday, Parkinson said, “We believe that the GAO report is flawed and that there has been a significant amount of this type of research done on the mainland.

“It’s been proven to be safe, and we think in the long run those facts will bear out. It’s certainly a challenge to us, but we think we’ll overcome it.”

Parkinson has said securing NBAF is among his top priorities.

Homeland Security wants to build NBAF to replace an aging facility on Plum Island, New York.

Under the proposal, NBAF would be used as a research lab to combat bio- and agro-terrorism threats. It would have the highest level of biosafety of federal labs.