Swine plague: 115 kilometers of anti-big boar net laid.

Swine fever emergency, construction of maxi containment fence for wild boar has started from Piedmont. Work officially kicked off Wednesday from the municipality of Ponzone, in the province of Alessandria, on the construction of the long-awaited wildlife barrier, as stipulated by the European Union’s protocol to contain the infection. The fence, which will be built in batches, will be progressively carried all the way to Liguria, arriving in the territory of Voltri, in the Genoa area: the laying of the first section (which will now be developed for about 10 kilometers) was also attended by the Emergency Commissioner and director of the Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Piedmont, Liguria and Valle d’Aosta, Angelo Ferrari, and the Undersecretary for Health Andrea Costa.

“We are in the presence of two emergencies,” Undersecretary Costa explained, “containing the spread of the virus and reducing the number of wild boars. Two actions to be carried out simultaneously, in a short time, also to contain the damage caused by these animals. For this reason, for the swine fever emergency that has affected Piedmont and Liguria, 50 million euros have been allocated so far: 10 for fencing nets, 25 for refreshments, and 15 for biosecurity of farms. “The fencing arrangement (also carried out following the method applied for the same issue in Belgium) will proceed, at the same time, on several lots, for an overall total of about 130 kilometers, and will also provide for some interruptions, for example at the height of roads and private property. Aspects, the latter, that do not fail to cause discussion. Combining it with the already existing barrier formed by the three highways that run between Piedmont and Liguria (A7, A26 and Predosa Bettole), where the same Autostrade Company is already intervening with its own additional 12 million euro plan to reinforce about 116 kilometers of fences, it will thus create a containment perimeter of about 260 kilometers, around the 114 municipalities in the area at risk. Meanwhile, however, the timing of implementation of the wild boar culling and reduction plan, which, in all, is expected to cover more than 20,000 animals between Liguria and Piedmont, continues to cause discussion.

“It is unacceptable that more time should be lost, with the risk that the swine fever problem could further spread,” says Marcello Grenna, president of Coldiretti Savona. “Outside the ‘red zone,’ someone will have to take political, economic and sanitary responsibility for not proceeding with the depopulation of wild boars.”

UPDATE:

(ANSA) – TURIN, Sept. 27 – A total of 115 kilometers of anti-big boar netting have been laid in the ‘red zone’ between Piedmont and Liguria, where an outbreak of African swine fever has been developing since late December 2021.

Today, in Abasse, a locality of Ponzone (Alessandria), an inspection by Health Undersecretary Andrea Costa, delegated to deal with and manage the African swine fever emergency, accompanied by the extraordinary commissioner, Angelo Ferrari, and the prefect of Alessandria, Francesco Zito.

“We are close to completing the work that will make it possible to permanently contain the spread of African swine fever. – Costa explained, in a note – We continue in this direction. I renew my commitment to make available to the commissarial structure the resources necessary to finish laying the barriers.” (ANSA).