Minister for Agriculture Tara Moriarty today visited the State Coordination Centre (SCC) at the Orange Agricultural Institute where experts from across government are leading the NSW Government's response to H5 bird flu.
More than 300 personnel have been working at the SCC since it was stood up in June, with dedicated teams of experts covering logistics, operations, communication and planning.
This includes staff from the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water and from Health and Aboriginal Affairs.
Public reporting is a critical part of the response to H5 bird flu, with more than 4,500 calls received by the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline since June. Every call from members of the community and NGOs involved with wildlife are triaged and investigated.
Presently NSW has had 13 events of H5 bird flu, predominately around the far south coast.
Governments nationally have agreed to report publicly on H5 bird flu using the term of 'event'. An event is a single investigation that may involve one or more birds from a site, and the NSW Government will report H5 cases using this nationally consistent approach.
Bird flu has not been detected in commercial poultry flocks or captive birds anywhere in Australia and the risk to human health remains low.
As part of the visit to the SCC the Minister for Agriculture has highlighted the need for backyard chicken and captive bird owners to now take biosecurity measures to reduce the risk of their birds being infected or transmitting H5, including:
- Maintain cleanliness in sheds, yards, aviaries and equipment
- Provide clean water and keep birds away from natural water sources such as streams and ponds
- Limit wild bird contact by placing food and water inside shelters, and using netting for free-range birds
- Isolate new birds before adding them to a flock
- Limit visitors and check if they've been around other birds
- Practice good hygiene when interacting with birds.
If you encounter a suspected sick bird, or marine mammals, avoid contact, record what you see, and report it immediately to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.
All surveillance testing for H5 bird flu takes place at the Elizbeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute (EMAI) and is funded by the NSW Government.
For information on preparing your backyard to keep your birds safe, see the H5 bird flu factsheet here.
Minister for Agriculture and Regional NSW, Tara Moriarty said:
"The dedicated team at the State Coordination Centre are working every day to help keep NSW prepared for H5N1 bird flu.
"This work often happens behind the scenes, but it plays an important role in helping protect our primary industries, producers, wildlife and regional communities.
"I also wanted to make a call out to people who have backyard chickens or aviaries to now take precautionary actions, if they haven't already, to protect their birds from H5.
"There is information available for people on how to protect their backyard birds and I recommend people check out the website and read the factsheet.
"Today's visit to the state coordination centre is an opportunity to recognise the expertise, commitment and collaboration of the people working here in Orange and throughout the state. We will need them as we respond to the virus spreading across Australia through our wildlife.
"I want to thank everyone involved for the work they are doing everyday with industry, NGOs, each other and local councils to minimise the impact this virus is having."
Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Jo Coombe said:
"Strong preparation and coordination are critical to protecting communities, industry and jobs.
"The work underway at the State Coordination Centre demonstrates the collaborative approach governments and industry are taking to respond to this evolving situation."
