January 5, 2007

State Bans Lead Sinkers
Reformer.com
5 Jan 2007
B Audette

If lakes and ponds ever freeze over this winter, ice anglers won't be able to use lead to sink their lines. As of the first of the year, lead sinkers, half- ounce or smaller, are illegal for use and sale in Vermont. The new law, which was passed by the Vermont Legislature in 2004, came out of a concern for wildlife lead poisoning. Those caught using lead sinkers could lose their fishing licenses for up to three years.

New Hampshire has had a similar law in place since the beginning of last year.
Earlier, in 2000, the Granite State became the first state in the nation to ban the use of lead sinkers once ounce or less and jigs less than 1 inch long on freshwater lakes and ponds. Five years later, New Hampshire extended its ban to rivers and streams, making the use of lead sinkers illegal to use on any fresh water body in the state.




CWD Update 83 [News Bulletin]
USGS National Wildlife Health Center
21 Dec 2006
B Richards

State and Provincial Updates

Alberta:

Alberta has recorded two more cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer after hunters recently turned in the heads for testing. This brings the total to 15 cases of CWD confirmed in wild deer in Alberta since the first case in September 2005. The two new cases involve deer harvested during the recent hunting season in areas monitored for CWD. A male mule deer from wildlife management unit (WMU) 151 along the Red Deer River tested positive. As well, a female mule deer was taken in WMU 234, west of Edgerton. The first case was near previously known cases; the second case occurred next to a part of Saskatchewan where positive wild and farmed deer have been found.

Alberta Sustainable Resource Development’s CWD information is at:
http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/fw/diseases/CWD/index.html.
A map showing the locations of Alberta CWD+ animals is at:
http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/fw/diseases/CWD/pdf/CWD_positive_Dec2006.pdf.




Rep. Gallegly Files Animal-Fighting Bill
The Lompoc Record
5 Jan 2007
N Nisperos

U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Simi Valley, filed a bill Thursday in Washington, D.C., designed to combat use of animals for fighting, such as cockfighting. The bill, if passed, would make violations of federal animal fighting law a felony punishable by up to two years in prison, make it a felony to transport an animal across state or international borders for the purpose of animal fighting, and prohibit the interstate and foreign commerce in knives and gaffs designed for use in cockfighting.

“Animal fighting is a brutal, inhumane practice,” Gallegly said in a statement. “Criminals engage in the activity to launder money. It is closely tied to the drug trade. Children are endangered from dogs trained to fight in their homes. And cockfighting has been tied to the spread of bird flu.”




Cambridge Healthtech Institute's 11th Annual "Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies" [Conference Announcement]
USAHA
5 Jan 2007

Location: Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Venue: Baltimore Marriott Inner Harbor
Dates: 12-13 Feb 2007

Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies continue to cause serious concern among researchers whose work utilizes materials from animals and/or humans which may be contaminated with the causative agent. The appearance of BSE in herds of cattle born after the introduction of the ruminant feed ban and the potential impact of BSE and CWD on human health in the U.S has raised new concerns and questions, as has the continued occurrence of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in North American deer herds.

The news that 3 of 17 recipients of blood from a vCJD donor contracted the disease has shown that transmission through blood transfusion is a reality. This conference will present the newest data on TSE's in the context of its application to the pharmaceutical, biological, environmental and device industries.

No comments: