This article is from page 59 of the 2008-01-15 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 59 JPG
THE threat of bird flu has once again reared its ugly head over the island of Ireland with the confirmation of a number of cases of avian influenza in the UK last week.
Despite a number of outbreaks across the water, Ireland has man- aged to stay completely bird flu-free since it first began to threat European farms almost two years ago.
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food have called on all poultry producers to maintain vigi- lance and report any suspected cases as soon as possible.
The department’s National Disease Control Centre (NDCC) Manage- ment Committee met last Thursday
to discuss the confirmation of the presence of high pathogenic H5N1 avian “flu in three dead wild mute swans in the Dorset area of Eng- land.
The committee was briefed on the most recent information available from the Department of the Environ- ment, Food and Rural Affairs (DE- FRA) in Britain and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Develop- ment (DARD) in Northern Ireland.
According to officials from the Department of Agriculture, constant contact between experts in Dublin and their colleagues in Belfast, Lon- don and Brussels has been ongoing since the outbreak was confirmed.
On Thursday morning the British authorities put in place the required
EU control measures; which include a Wild Bird Control Area and Moni- toring Area, within which bird keep- ers are required to house birds or otherwise isolate them from contact A100 MM AUC mayb KCK
“The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has taking ex- pert ornithological advice from the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and BirdWatch Ireland on current migratory patterns between Britain and Ireland,’ said a spokes- person from the Department of Ag- riculture.
“The most recent information available is that there is currently lit- tle migration and that the migratory pattern is stable and, as such, the risk to Ireland remains low.
“Department of Agriculture offi- cials have advised Minister Cough- lan of the current situation and will be monitoring developments in Dor- set carefully in the coming days.”
Meanwhile, the IFA National Poul- try Committee Chairman Ned Mor- rissey has also called on poultry growers here to maintain the highest levels of vigilance.
He said producers here have im- plemented extra measures such as the installation of water chlorination systems to ensure the health status of their flocks 1s protected.
“Poultry producers meet the high- est veterinary standards at all times, and are particularly vigilant at the moment to protect the health of their flocks,” he added.