DAERA - NI Notice - Avian Influenza update

[willie reynolds]

Colleagues

As discussed during our meeting last week, an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) will be introduced in Northern Ireland (NI) from 00.01 on 1 December .

The AIPZ places a legal requirement on all bird keepers in NI to follow strict biosecurity measures. This applies if you keep pet birds, commercial flocks or just a few birds in a backyard or hobby flock.

The decision to introduce an AIPZ follows the detection of highly pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N8 (HPAI H5N8) in five wild birds across NI in recent weeks. Further cases of AI have been detected in over 100 wild birds across Great Britain with five cases of the H5N8 strain being confirmed in commercial premises in England. There have also been three reported cases in wild birds in the Republic of Ireland where similar measures are also being introduced on 1 December.

The measures in the AIPZ are a legal requirement for all bird keepers and include stringent, mandatory biosecurity measures to help prevent the spread of the disease from wild birds, or another source, to poultry, including:

a ban on bird gatherings
a requirement that poultry or other captive birds are provided with food and water to which wild birds have no access,
avoiding transfer of contamination between premises by cleansing and disinfecting equipment, vehicles and footwear;
separating wild waterfowl (ducks and geese) from domestic species; and
reducing the movement of people, vehicles or equipment to and from areas where poultry or captive birds are kept
Full details of measures required within the AIPZ can be found in the Avian Influenza Prevention Zone declaration here: http://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications ... laration-0

If you haven’t already done so, it would be appreciated if you would encourage all your members to complete the biosecurity self-assessment checklist which is now available on the DAERA website Click here. The checklist will assist all keepers in assuring themselves on the level of biosecurity on their premises over this high risk period and ensure that they are complying with the mandatory measures required within the AIPZ.

The required risk mitigation measures should be considered as the minimum necessary. All keepers are encouraged to exceed this where possible. The completed form should be retained and revisited periodically to ensure the measures deployed remain effective.


Further guidance can be found at the following links

Avian Influenza Prevention Zone Q&A | Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (daera-ni.gov.uk)

AIPZ Guidance | Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (daera-ni.gov.uk)

Thank you for your ongoing support with proactive messaging regarding vigilance, early reporting of suspected disease and importance of maintaining good biosecurity measures during this crucial period.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Kind regards Jim Blee

Jim Blee I Animal Disease Control & Trade Policy Branch I Veterinary Service Animal Health Group I Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs I Ballykelly House I 111 Ballykelly Road I Ballykelly I Limavady I BT49 9HP



Tel: (028) 77442074 I Ext: 49074 I Mob: 07841 804 520 I Email: jim.blee@daera-ni.gov.uk

[willie reynolds]

From: DAERA RTA Badger <RTAbadger@daera-ni.gov.uk>
Sent: 04 December 2020 09:56
To: nipapigeons@hotmail.co.uk <nipapigeons@hotmail.co.uk>
Subject: DAERA - Information on Dead Foxes

Hello,



I am contacting you on behalf of DAERA due to your involvement in the poultry industry.



DAERA operates a service whereby we collect the carcases of certain types of animals in order to test them for the presence of diseases that may be able to affect or impact upon public health. One of those animals is foxes. If you (or any of your suppliers), were to have, or be aware of, any foxes which have been killed we are happy to dispose of them for you. This will provide a service to you and will help us in our research.



If you would like to be involved in helping us with this project you can contact the DAERA Wildlife Unit via the following channels

Tel: 028 77442399 | E-mail: rtabadger@daera-ni.gov.uk



and our staff will be happy to assist.

Many thanks, in anticipation of your assistance.

Kind Regards


RTA Badgerline Team

TB Wildlife Unit

VSAHG|Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs|Ballykelly House|

111 Ballykelly Road|Ballykelly|BT49 9HP

Tel: 028 77442399 | DD:49399 | E-mail: rtabadger@daera-ni.gov.uk

[willie reynolds]

Subject: RE: Avian influenza update

Colleagues



As you no doubt aware, any major, notifiable or new and emerging animal disease outbreaks worldwide are monitored so we can assess the risk they may pose to the UK. These outbreak assessments help us decide how to manage or reduce the risks.



For your information, please see attached an updated outbreak assessment regarding highly pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N8 in the UK and Europe.



Briefly, and as at 01 December:

Since our last report on 24 November, the UK has reported another outbreak of HPAI H5N8 in domestic poultry and multiple new cases of HPAI H5N8 in wild birds.
Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden have reported HPAI H5N8 in wild birds.
Belgium, France, Germany, Netherlands and Poland have reported HPAI H5N8 in poultry and captive birds.
The risk of HPAI incursion in wild birds in the GB has been raised to VERY HIGH.
The overall risk of exposure of poultry in the GB has been increased to MEDIUM (with stringent biosecurity) TO HIGH (where there are biosecurity breaches). (In NI, the risk to domestic poultry has been assessed as moderate, with biosecurity levels on individual sites a crucial mitigation factor.)


This report is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collectio ... ments-2020

Kind regards

Jim Blee

Jim Blee I Animal Disease Control & Trade Policy Branch I Veterinary Service Animal Health Group I Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs I Ballykelly House I 111 Ballykelly Road I Ballykelly I Limavady I BT49 9HP



Tel: (028) 77442074 I Ext: 49074 I Mob: 07841 804 520 I Email: jim.blee@daera-ni.gov.uk