Environment requires coexistence of humans and wildlife

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Opinion

Sun, December 10, 2023 | 08:56

Guest Column

Environment requires coexistence of humans and wildlife

Posted : 2023-08-28 16:35

Updated : 2023-08-28 16:39

By Shin Dong-in

The National Institute of Wildlife Disease Control and Prevention (NIWDC) was established under Korea's Ministry of Environment in October 2020 for the effective management of wildlife health, which is an essential action plan to respond to emerging zoonoses.

Since my appointment as the second president of NIWDC in September 2022, the institution has been working tirelessly to create an environment in which humans and animals can cohabit in compliance with the policy of the Ministry of Environment.

The cornerstone of this strategy for wildlife disease management is aimed at preventing disease transmission across species barriers of wildlife, livestock and human beings.

African Swine Fever (ASF) and Avian Influenza (AI or bird flu) are the most concerning wildlife diseases in Korea. According to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), ASF is a highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild pigs, whose mortality rate can reach 100 percent. In Korea, the first outbreaks occurred in September 2019 at a pig farm and in October of the same year from wild pigs. ASF viruses had been discovered in four provinces and 35 cities and counties in Korea as of June this year.

Based on scientific approaches, we have been installing fences to effectively prevent the movement of infected wild boars into ASF-free regions, as well as strengthening the response system associated with capturing and searching in collaboration with local governments.

Furthermore, after completing test operations in 2022, drones with thermal imaging cameras and detection dogs have been deployed in the field. We are also currently developing a diffusion prediction system by thoroughly studying epidemic status, ecological factors, environmental epidemiology surveys and so on.

In order to further mitigate ASF outbreaks in wild boars, multiple efforts and collaborations are required in addition to the immediate response of outbreaks. For instance, NIWDC has been working together with public and private sectors as well as academic institutions. Joint research for vaccine development is in progress with the shared goal of narrowing down effective vaccine candidates.

Another disease NIWDC is primarily concerned with is avian influenza, also better known as bird flu, which is currently being monitored at 87 locations around the nation. In addition, it has been constantly handled with the assistance of international partnerships with Mongolia and Japan. Notwithstanding the above, 174 cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses were identified in May, which is the second-highest number ever. Regarding the viruses discovered in feces and carcasses, it is anticipated that a prediction system based on machine learning will be developed using the data processed and gathered from the excrement and bodies.

As a following step, NIWDC intends to build an analytical laboratory for whole-genome sequencing (WGS) that specializes in cutting-edge techniques such as next-generation sequencing (NGS) in order to respond to severely transformed avian influenza viruses. When wild birds designated as endangered species or natural monuments are exhibiting unusual behaviors such as twisting their bodies or whirling in one direction, it is not easy to transfer them to a laboratory without special measures due to the possibility of viral spread. To limit the transmission of viruses, NIWDC is planning to develop a Biosafety Cage to transport atypical entities safely to the laboratory.

On the basis of the confidence that the NIWDC has acquired over the last two and a half years, we intend to strengthen our partnership with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) and the Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency (APQA) to reinforce our capacity in confronting new emerging zoonotic diseases by protecting the health of human, animals, and ecosystem in whole.

Last but not least, I am expecting many other nations to attend the Asia-Pacific Policy Roundtable on Wildlife Diseases, which will be held between Oct. 10 to 11 in Jeju, Korea. We will discuss pending issues of wildlife disease management from each country as well as come up with a collective commitment through the Statement on the Management of Wildlife Disease in Asia and Pacific.

Shin Dong-in is the president of the National Institute of Wildlife Disease Control and Prevention under the Ministry of Environment of Korea.