NEWS BRIEFS...

Manhattan Selected for DHS Facility
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) Dec. 5, recommending Manhattan, Kan., as the preferred site for the state-of-the-art, high-security laboratory facility to study foreign animal and zoonotic (transferable from animal to human) diseases that can affect livestock, including foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).

While a formal Record of Decision will officially designate a site in January, officials are expected to follow the Manhattan recommendation. The facility design is set to begin in 2009, with plans for construction to begin in 2010. It is expected that the NBAF would be operational by 2015.

The NBAF will replace the current facilities at the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) off the New York coastline. (To learn more read “Plum Island”or “Tug of War Over Animal Disease Research”).

Further details on the proposed NBAF and the site-selection process are available at www.dhs.gov/nbaf.

MN Discovers TB-positive Cows
The Minnesota Board of Animal Health announced Dec. 4 that three mature cows sent to harvest from a buyout herd in Beltrami County tested positive for bovine tuberculosis (TB). The herd is located in the state’s Modified Accredited Zone, within the Management Zone. This finding will not result in a downgrade of status for this area or the state.
For more information on TB, visit www.mntbfree.com.

TB Identified in Indiana
The Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH) announced Dec. 2 it is investigating a case of bovine TB in a beef cattle herd in southeastern Indiana. The TB-positive cow was identified through routine testing at a meat-processing facility in Pennsylvania.
Indiana’s bovine TB-free status will remain under federal guidelines. The last time an Indiana herd tested positive for the disease was in the 1970s.

Bovine TB Detected in N.D. Animal
A North Dakota Beef herd is being tested for bovine tuberculosis (TB) following the identification of a cow with a TB lesion at a Minnesota meat processing plant, the North Dakota Department of Agriculture announced early December.

According to Meatingplace.com, state veterinarian Susan Keller said pathological tests at the National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa, confirmed the diagnosis of bovine TB. A traceback determined that the animal came from a livestock operation in southwestern North Dakota.

North Dakota has been officially TB-free since Jan. 1, 1976. Under federal guidelines, that status remains in effect.