[Reportage] Ducks quack just before they’re buried alive

Posted on : 2014-02-06 15:33 KST Modified on : 2014-02-06 15:33 KST
Recent outbreak of avian flu leading to questioning over wisdom and humaneness of mass cullings
 North Chungcheong Province
North Chungcheong Province

By Bang Jun-ho, staff reporter in Eumseong and Seo Young-ji, staff reporter

Something was wriggling inside the tan burlap sack. The four ducks stuffed inside were struggling fiercely just before they were buried. They had been gassed with carbon dioxide, but they were still alive. Before being put into the sack, the ducks still had enough energy to flap their wings. With their wings held firmly, the ducks disappeared into the sack, and the zipper closed like the gates of hell. The ducks were quacking, as if to scream. The sound set the dogs in the area barking. Duck feathers drifted through the air like snow, mixed with the putrid smell of excrement.

The culling of ducks in Eumseong County, North Chungcheong Province on Feb. 4 was a chilling sight. On that day, about 7,000 ducks staying in seven duck houses met their end just at the one farm visited by a Hankyoreh reporter. The culling, which began at 10 am, wasn’t finished until well past 8 in the evening.

The ducks were not even infected with avian influenza (AI), or bird flu. Instead, their lives were snuffed out prematurely as part of a “preventative cull” of around 42,000 ducks in two villages in Eumseong County. The cull in Eumseong County started on Feb. 3. All the chickens and ducks were being killed within a 3km radius of a farm in Samjeong Village where an outbreak of bird flu was suspected.

First, the ducks that were condemned to death were doused with carbon dioxide gas inside the duck house. Next, the ducks were driven into a temporary 3m pen set up with yellow boxes and two ropes between the cattle shed and the duck house.

Hundreds of ducks were squeezed into the small area, their bodies jostling. Some ducks even spread their wings and tried to fly. The ten or so workers taking part in the cull stuffed ducks into the sacks one at a time. An epidemic control worker from Eumseong County Office said, “They die shortly after they’re put in the sack. They don’t have enough oxygen, and they will be fighting with the other ducks.”

This violates the guidelines for how the ducks are to be culled. According to the emergency action guidelines for bird flu, which were revised in 2011 by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs, ducks should first be culled using carbon dioxide and then put into the sacks. Sources indicate that the guidelines are not being properly followed not only in Eumseong County but also in other areas. While the ducks are exposed to carbon dioxide, this takes place in the duck house, which is not an airtight space. As a result, the ducks do not die, and are instead buried alive.

Around 30 burlap sacks were loaded onto a waiting truck. Some 120 to 150 ducks were to be carried off to their deaths. About ten meters away, the vehicle stopped to the right of a stable. In the ground was a disposal canister measuring eight meters across and deep enough for an adult person to stand in. The workers took the ducks from the sacks and placed them in the large plastic canister.

“We put just the ducks in [without the sacks] because otherwise they won’t decompose quickly,” explained an official with the Eumseong County Office. “The old way was to lay some felt on the ground and bury them like that, but that caused leaching problems, so now we put the ducks in the canister, put a lid on it, and then cover it with dirt.”

One canister is said to be big enough for ten thousand ducks. At the top is a tube for extracting gases and leachate. Workers visit later to remove the fluids. This year marks the first time this method has been tried; no decision has been made on how to finally dispose of the canisters.

After every cull, epidemic control workers sank down onto yellow boxes, their faces blank. Few words were spoken. Nearby, bread and bottles of rice beer and water went virtually unnoticed. Occasionally, one of the workers would let out a complaint. “I don’t what we’re doing out here in this cold weather,” said one. “I don’t know if it’s the [carbon dioxide gas] anesthesia, but this has been really tough,” said another.

At another duck farm right next door, the culling had been finished the night before. Its five big duck houses sat silent, with no sign of the ten thousands of ducks that had lived there. The owner seemed on edge. “Go away now,” he said. “This place is contaminated!” One of the stables still carried an “under quarantine” sign.

In contrast to the farms where the culling was ongoing, the farm was quiet and no residents could be seen anywhere. Outside vehicle access was blocked at the village entrance.

“No one who hasn’t been sterilized is allowed within a 500-meter radius,” explained one control worker.

Eumseong County did not have enough canisters to finish its work that day. As of Feb. 5, a total of 74,600 ducks had been put to death as a “preventive measure” in Eumseong alone.

25 million ducks and chickens culled over the last eight years

According to research findings released on Feb. 5 by the Korea Association for Animal Protection and Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE), nearly 25 million chickens, ducks, and other poultry birds were put down in four rounds of culling (in 2003, 2006, 2008 and 2010) since AI first broke out in 2003, but only 121 actual infections were confirmed. Another 5,102,371 cows and pigs were culled after outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in 2000, 2002, 2010, and 2011. Many critics are demanding a stop to the indiscriminate cullings, which they say cause environmental pollution and other secondary damages and show a disregard for life.

In its 1999 amendment of the Act on the Prevention of Livestock Epidemics, the South Korean government ruled AI and foot-and-mouth diseases to be “Type 1 epidemics” and allowed for the culling of all livestock within three kilometers of any farm where they occurred, regardless of the other animals‘ infection status. Authority for culling decisions lies with the local government head within 500 meters of the infected farm. Expanding the radius to three kilometers requires discussions between the provincial governor and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The ministry then consults the Livestock Epidemic Council before making a decision.

Experts complained that the process of deciding the scope of culling includes no procedures for input from farm owners or specialists.

“What they call ‘consultation’ is just a majority decision by a small group of experts,” said Kim Seon-kyung, a researcher at the Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health.

“It’s basically a kind of ‘dictatorship’ - once the order come down, the farmers have to obey,” Kim added. “They have a tough time saying ‘no’ to anything the government decides, whether it’s the lure of compensation and support, fear of damages, or worries about criticisms from the community.”

The Ministry of Agriculture offers 80% of the day’s market rate for birds at farms with a definite AI diagnosis, but the rate drops to 20% when farms fail to report. Compensation at 100% of market rates is given in cases of preventive culling.

 

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

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