DPI stockpiles bird flu masks

The New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (DPI) is stockpiling face masks as part of revised Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) procedures to deal with bird flu. Chief veterinary officer Bruce Christie says the OH&S review was prompted by last year's national bird flu drill, Operation Eleusis. He says the department has also decided how people would access anti-virals. Mr Christie says they might be required for lab staff at the Orange Agricultural Institute, field workers and rural lands protection boards personnel. But he says it is unlikely they would be needed in Orange. "Because most of the poultry establishments and bird establishments aren't near Orange," he said. "So anywhere within the state, the Department of Health in conjunction with the police or anybody else who needed to would be able to get those anti-virals to whoever needed them within 12 hours." Meanwhile, the DPI in Orange is looking for new, humane ways to destroy birds in case of a widespread outbreak of avian influenza. Mr Christie says Animal Health Australia has trialed wrapping entire sheds in plastic then pumping in carbon dioxide or other gases to kill the birds. He says departmental staff have been giving some technical assistance and feedback because they are the ones who will ultimately have to do it. Mr Christie says methods are needed which do not require people to enter sheds because that agitates poultry. "One of the ways of doing that is to be able to close the shed up so you don't get any leakages and carbon dioxide's obviously a way that, its good enough to destroy the birds without any stress and pain and at the same time means that people don't have to get in there," he said. http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200608/s1720516.htm