Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department Report 2007-2008
[Director's Message] [Overview] [Agriculture] [Fisheries]
[Inspection and Quarantine] [Nature Conservation] [Country and Marine Parks] [Appendices] |
Inspection and Quarantine WORK OF THE INSPECTION AND QUARANTINE BRANCH The objectives of the branch are:
LIVESTOCK FARM INSPECTIONS To protect the general population from avian influenza, the Department has imposed biosecurity requirements on local poultry farms, in addition to the implementation of its universal compulsory vaccination programme. Every batch of local chickens is also tested for avian influenza, and only when the results are negative are the chickens allowed to be sold for human consumption. In 2007-08, AFCD staff conducted more than 5 400 inspections of local livestock farms and quarantined 1 244 pigs imported for breeding purposes. One pig farm was prosecuted and convicted of offences for using prohibited chemicals.
VETERINARY DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORY The Laboratory provides testing services of animal pathogens, chemical residues in pre-slaughter food animals and veterinary diagnostic support. During the year, over 8 800 requests were received for animal, bird and fish disease investigation. About 279 300 tests for AI, and over 100 500 for chemical residue monitoring were conducted.
To safeguard the population against AI, the Department continued its year-round programme to monitor and screen for the presence of the virus at various sites considered to be at risk, such as poultry farms, the wholesale poultry market, pet shops, recreational parks and nature reserves. Dead wild birds were also collected and tested daily. From April 2007 to March 2008, over 43 000 carcasses and faecal swab samples were collected at various locations and tested for the virus. Except for 13 wild birds found dead at various locations during the year, the highly pathogenic H5N1 AI virus was not detected in any sample. The number of positive cases found was considered to be normal for the period and similar to that found in the previous year. To enforce the legislation enacted in February 2006 to ban the keeping of backyard poultry (chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons and quails), Departmental staff patrolled all local villages and seized 72 poultry in 2007-08. Offenders are liable to a fine of $50,000 to $100,000.In October 2007, a three-day course was conducted by the Department to train its staff on emergency response procedures in the event of an AI outbreak. As part of the course, a mock poultry culling exercise, codenamed "Exercise Daisy", was conducted at Ta Kwu Ling Operation Centre. The Department from time to time issued reminders to relevant religious organisations not to release birds to the wild. Organisations contacted agreed to cooperate and inform their members about the advice.
CONTROL ON PESTICIDES Comments collected from the public consultation exercise in 2007 were taken into account in drafting the law for a new pesticide control regime. The proposed control areas mainly concern pesticide user control, product registration and regulation of the export, transhipment and transit of pesticides regulated by the Stockholm Convention and the Rotterdam Convention which have recently been ratified by China. In view of the increasing public awareness about pesticide safety, the Department continued to hold technical talks and distribute leaflets to educate the public and government departments on the safe and proper use of pesticides. During the year, several environmentally friendly pesticides were registered, including a tobacco beetle sex pheromone for monitoring of tobacco beetle, a storage pest and an improved formulation of Monomolecular Film for control of mosquitoes. Statistics on pesticide control are at Appendix 8.
PLANT VARIETIES PROTECTION The Plant Varieties Protection Ordinance, Cap. 490, provides plant breeders with the legal means to apply for proprietary rights over cultivated plant varieties they have bred or discovered and developed. Grantees shall have the exclusive rights to import, export, produce and sell reproductive materials of the protected variety. The rights will be granted for a term of 20 or 25 years. During the year, a new grapevine variety, namely SUGRASIXTEEN, was granted plant variety rights. This new seedless black grape variety is distinctive for its unique muscat flavour with a foxy taste.
ANIMAL AND PLANT QUARANTINE CONTROL As the animal import and export control authority in Hong Kong, the Department is responsible for ensuring that all cross-border animal movements are closely monitored to prevent the introduction of animal diseases into Hong Kong. Special permits issued by the Department are required for the import of live animals and birds in accordance with the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance, Cap. 139 and the Rabies Ordinance, Cap. 421. Importing animals and birds without a special permit is liable to prosecution. In 2007-08, a total of 4 706 permits were issued for the import/transit of live animals and birds. To comply with the import requirements of destination places, the Department issues animal health certificates to facilitate the export of animals and birds from Hong Kong. In 2007-08, a total of 3 160 applications for Animal Health Certificates were processed by the Department.To strengthen the efforts to prevent illegal importation of animals and to safeguard public health, the Quarantine Detector Dog (QDD) Programme commenced operation in February 2008 at various land control points. The use of QDD has been shown to be an effective, internationally recognised tool for the detection of prohibited items. The QDD can detect many controlled items including mammals, birds, reptiles and other animal products even when they are hidden in baggage or under several layers of clothing. The International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) No 15, Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in International Trade, endorsed by the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures of the International Plant Protection Convention under the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), requires wood packaging material used in cargoes to undergo approved methyl bromide fumigation or heat treatment and to be marked with an FAO logo with a view to preventing the spread of plant pests in international trade. There are methyl bromide fumigators approved by the Department to conduct the ISPM compliant treatment in Hong Kong. During the year, the Department also put in place a heat treatment accreditation scheme that provides traders a more environmentally friendly measure to treat the wood packaging material. A heat treatment company accredited is authorised to apply the FAO logo on treated wood packaging material. So far one company has been accredited.The Department continued to keep up inspection on imported plants to prevent the introduction of pests such as the Red Imported Fire Ant into Hong Kong. Publicity was strengthened to educate travellers not to bring in infected plants. Workshops and technical advice were also provided to other government departments and the public. To allow traders to enjoy a speedy and more convenient application process for the importation of plants, the Department launched an online application service. Statistics on plant import controls and phytosanitary certification services are at Appendix 7.
ANIMAL WELFARE Under the law, all animal traders have to be licensed. In 2007, some 500 Animal Trader Licences were issued, covering the trade of dogs, cats, pet birds, food birds and food reptiles. Since December 2006, anyone found guilty of cruelty to animals is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and imprisonment for 3 years. During the year, there were 9 successful prosecutions relating to animal cruelty. An Announcement in the Public Interest (API) was introduced in March 2008 to educate and appeal to the public to report any cases of animal cruelty. To further promote animal welfare and responsible pet ownership, the Department held a "Pets are for Life" carnival in March 2008 which attracted more than 18 000 visitors through exhibition panels and games. Public awareness programmes covering both the media and public transport system were also conducted. PREVENTION OF RABIES In 2007-08, a total of some 50 000 dogs were licensed and vaccinated against rabies. To safeguard the public from aggressive dogs and cats and to improve environmental hygiene, some 9 000 stray dogs and 5 000 stray cats were caught or handled during the year. Healthy animals with good temperaments would be selected for re-homing. About 700 animals were re-homed through animal welfare organisations. To further prevent the risk of rabies, the Department proposed to introduce additional measures on animal traders to control the source of dogs sold in the pet trade. During the year, it consulted relevant stakeholders, including representatives of animal traders, animal breeders, kennel clubs and animal welfare organisations, on its proposals.
2008 OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC EQUESTRIAN EVENTS Hong Kong would stage the Equestrian Events for both the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games.As the inspection and quarantine authority for animals and plants, AFCD would be responsible for enforcing the protocol requirements regarding the import and re-export of horses that will participate in the Equestrian Events, as well as horse feed and bedding material of plant origin. In addition, the Department would be responsible for monitoring the stabling and welfare of all horses participating in the Equestrian Events. To prepare for the Events, during the year the Department:
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