(NZ) Hunt for importers of rabbit virus over

[Guest guest]

(NB: Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease is now a legal biocide used to kill wild

rabbits

in New Zealand. The New Zealand Government originally said NO to the import

and use of RHD as a biocide and some farmers broke the law and imported

and spread RHD in New Zealand. The Government gave in and changed the law.

If this disease was anthrax or some other disease known to kill humans

, I wonder if the NZ government would have searched harder to find and

convict

those who imported the RHD virus into NZ).

 

Pests: MAF ends RHD investigation

30 January 2002

New Zealand Press Association

http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1008,1085884a3600,FF.html

The hunt for the importers of rabbit haemorraghic disease (RHD) is over.

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry enforcement unit manager

Jockey Jensen said MAF had been unable to determine who had

imported the rabbit killing disease in 1997 or how they did it.

The time limit for laying charges had lapsed, prompting the

decision to end the investigation.

" From a criminal liability point of view, we are out of the loop, but

from a prevention point of view we are still keen to find any

information, " he said.

A 1997 application to MAF by several South Island local authorities

and farmer groups to import RHD was declined, but in August of

that year the discovery of thousands of dead rabbits on a Cromwell

farm revealed the rabbit-killing virus had been illegally imported and

released.

By the time officials got to grips with the scope of the release, it

was beyond control.

A story of secret deals and midnight meetings in the South Island

was later revealed - with a group of Mackenzie Basin farmers

admitting spreading the virus.

They devised their own recipes and distributed the virus to other

farmers. But just who imported it and how it got here remains a mystery.

Mr Jensen said he still hoped someone would reveal how they

smuggled the virus through New Zealand's biosecurity borders so

MAF could ensure that loophole was closed.

RHD continues to help keep Otago's rabbit problem under control

although a just-released study reveals the importance of follow-up control

work.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Pests: Perfect conditions for rabbits to breed

30 January 2002

New Zealand Press Association

http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1008,1085883a3600,FF.html

Breeding conditions this summer could not be more perfect for the

rabbit, one of nature's true survivors.

One of the driest springs and early summers on record was followed by weeks

of wet weather, transforming the normally brown, burnt Central Otago hills

into a

lush green smorgasbord for the pest.

Some farmers said it was the best rabbit breeding season they could

remember, allowing the population, subdued by rabbit haemorrhagic disease,

to

boom.

Breeding started early, the dry weather ensured kittens survived and then

the

spurt of grass growth helped lactation.

Does are producing multiple litters this summer, with at least another month

of

breeding likely.

Kittens born in November are also breeding, adding to the rabbit influx.

Farmers report signs that a new wave of RHD may be sweeping through the

population but given the large population, the Otago Regional Council is

urging

farmers to carry out secondary control on survivors once the virus has swept

through the population.

 

End