The state plans to open a long-awaited animal disease diagnostic laboratory in Western Pennsylvania, but not in Butler County, despite a local effort to bring the lab to Slippery Rock University.

Funded by a $6 million allocation in the 2024-25 state budget and another $2 million proposed in this year’s budget by Gov. Josh Shapiro, the new lab is set to become the fourth in the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System and the only one in the western half the state.

The labs help the state detect and respond to animal disease outbreaks. Having one in Western Pennsylvania will speed diagnoses for farmers in the region, lowering their business costs, and helping protect their animals and investments, Shapiro said.

The three existing labs are the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Pennsylvania Veterinary Laboratory in Harrisburg, Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ Animal Diagnostic Laboratory in University Park and the New Bolton Center at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in Kennett Square.

A Department of Agriculture spokesman said the timetable for opening the new lab has not been determined.

County Commissioner Kim Geyer, who led the effort to bring the new lab to Butler County, said she is disappointed the county wasn’t selected.

She said SRU was among the four universities in the region the state considered for the lab. The others were the University of Pittsburgh, Indiana University and Penn State’s Beaver Campus, which was selected in February.

Geyer said a compelling argument was made to chose SRU.

“We were extremely hopeful as we knew we had put together a strong and compelling argument in our application’s narrative due to Butler County and Slippery Rock University already possessing key elements, strong data, and evidence of a strong agricultural and farming county,” Geyer said.

The argument included the county’s ease of accessibility via interstates 79, 76, 80 and 90, along with routes 422, 19 and 228; SRU has a level-two bio space laboratory, which was a prerequisite to apply; and three consecutive years of enrollment growth, Geyer said.

She said she also believed SRU would be the best site because Penn State announced the Beaver Campus was among 12 campuses it was considering closing due to declining enrollment. Campus enrollment is below 500, she said.

“Naturally, we were quite disappointed with the decision, and we want the state to know that in the event there is a potential closure of the Beaver Campus, Butler County’s Slippery Rock University stands by, ready to assist as the new location. We want our Butler County Farm Bureau membership and agricultural community to know that together in partnership with SRU, we made a great effort,” Geyer said.

SRU issued a statement saying it is grateful for being considered.

“Slippery Rock University is grateful to have laboratories and other facilities that are being considered to serve the commonwealth in different ways beyond student learning. As a public institution, we continue to make strides to further contribute to the region and support a variety of social and economic initiatives, including those in our local agricultural industry. Although we did not receive this funding, we applaud our peers at Penn State University and look forward to more opportunities and investments at SRU in the future,” the statement read.

William Thiele, a dairy farmer in Winfield Township and a member of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau state board of directors, said he is glad Shapiro believes it is important to have a lab in Western Pennsylvania.

“I’m glad it’s in Beaver County, which is not far from here. It’s an hour from my place,” Thiele said. “Even though it’s not in Butler County, it’s still close by, relatively.”