South Korea is to start year-round monitoring for bird flu after being hit by its worst outbreak earlier this year, the agriculture ministry said Tuesday.
It said migratory and resident wild birds would be monitored regularly and all chicken and duck farms would be inspected every other week for both the virulent and less contagious strains of avian influenza.
Some 23 monitoring teams will be established nationwide.
Quarantine authorities were caught by surprise when an outbreak began in early April and swept through most of the country.
In the past the country maintained a heightened bird flu alert from November to March, when migratory birds stay in the country and weather conditions may help spread the virus.
The government culled more than eight million birds and the cost of the outbreak was estimated at 264 billion won (259 million dollars).
No confirmed case has been reported since May 12. If this continues to be the case, the ministry will declare the country free of the disease in August.
The ministry said the country's 2,384 duck farms would be watched especially closely because ducks have longer incubation periods and were found to be the main cause of the spread of bird flu.
South Korea has been hit by bird flu outbreaks three times. But no human is known to have contracted the disease, even though the H5N1 strain found here has killed more than 240 people worldwide since late 2003.
© 2008 AFP
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