UK's Foot and Mouth Cull Raises Toxic Dilemma

LONDON, United Kingdom, April 19, 2001 (ENS) - The foot and mouth outbreak is under control, according to the United Kingdom government's chief scientist, but the logistical challenge of quickly disposing of more than a million slaughtered animals is raising new fears over dioxins and groundwater contamination.

The disease, which hit the United Kingdom in February, is found in cloven footed animals including cattle, sheep, goats and pigs. It has no implications for the human food chain and is not necessarily fatal to animals.

Smokes rises from burning carcasses at a farm in Ponteland, Northumberland. (Photos by Ian Britton, courtesy freefoto.com)

Some 1,600 veterinarians and 1,900 soldiers have been deployed to help keep up with the cull and tackle the logistical problem of disposing of so many animals. Currently, cattle, sheep and pigs slaughtered because of FMD are being disposed of by burning, rendering or burial.

The UK's Foods Standards Agency confirmed today that the burning of animals releases small amounts of chemical substances, such as dioxins and certain hydrocarbons.

These can be taken up into the food chain by animals grazing on grass where these chemicals settle. "Dioxins and hydrocarbons could cause health problems if taken in at high levels over long periods of time and it is important to keep the amounts as low as possible," said an FSA statement.

Sign of the times.

The FSA added that, "at present, it is thought unlikely that the extra emissions from burning will pose anything other than an extremely small additional risk to health but we will take action and advise the public should the situation change."

At the beginning of the FMD crisis, the UK's Environment Agency advised that sheep and pigs could be buried, but that it would be preferable for cattle to be burned or rendered and not buried, so as to protect public health from any risk of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) and other infectivity entering water supplies and the environment generally.

BSE, otherwise known as "mad cow" disease is a slowly progressive and ultimately fatal neurological disorder of adult cattle. It has been linked to a human spongiform encephalopathy, known as Creutzfeldt Jakob disease.

In the UK, more than 80 people have died or are suffering from Creutzfeldt Jakob disease, the result of a BSE epidemic discovered in UK cattle in the 1980s.

In light of the huge numbers of animals needing to be disposed of the FSA's Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC) was asked by the government for its expert advice on the risk from burying cattle.

Prime Minister Tony Blair. (Photo courtesy 10 Downing Street)

SEAC estimated that the likely BSE infectivity in cattle born on or after August 1 1996 would be about 400 times less than that in cattle born before that date.

On this advice, the Environment Agency has decided that, if required for logistical reasons, and depending on local water conditions and other factors, cattle born after August 1, 1996 can be buried, subject to site specific risk assessments.

The pollution risks from carcass burial, and to a lesser extent from burial of ash after burning, relate to potential leaching into groundwater of the breakdown products of carcass decomposition, rather than any risk of transmitting FMD.

Potential pollutants are ammonia, chlorides, phosphates, degradable organic compounds and bacteriological contamination. Metal concentrations could be elevated and there could be an impact on the taste and smell of water.

In England and Wales, approximately 35 percent of public water supply is based on abstraction of groundwater. In Cumbria, where the largest number of confirmed foot and mouth cases are concentrated, there are about 140 abstractions for public water supply and/or food or drink processing.

Unique to the United Kingdom, Herdwicks could soon become a rare breed, because of foot and mouth disease. (Photo courtesy courtesy Herdwick Sheep Website)

It accused the Environment Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) of being unwilling to discuss whether that is happening.

Mike Childs, campaigns director at Friends of the Earth, called for a public inquiry and openness to assess how the crisis arose and how it was handled.

"There is no doubt that this foot and mouth crisis will have an environmental impact, it is important we minimize this impact as far as possible," said Childs.

"The Environment Agency's preferred disposal must be used to full capacity before burning or burying on farms. Unfortunately it appears that MAFF might be ignoring the Environment Agency's hierarchy and instead adopting the cheapest approach.

"At the end of this crisis we need to detail where all the animals have been disposed of and carry out appropriate monitoring to assess any risks still posed to farmers and the wider environment.

"We also need to have a public inquiry looking at how the crisis arose and how it has been handled. The vitally important discussion about the future of farming and food production in Britain must be take place in public, not behind closed doors."

Today, there were signs that the FMD outbreak is under control.

"In the seven day period ending Sunday, April 15, there was an average of 27 new confirmed cases each day, compared to 43 in the seven day period ending Sunday April 1," said chief scientist Professor David King in a statement.

"This is a significant reduction in cases. The figures for the first part of this week (21, 22 and 19) are in line with the declining trend," he added.

The number of confirmed FMD cases in the UK stood at 1,397 today. There are 22 confirmed cases in Europe, including one in the Republic of Ireland.