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For Release: Monday, December 18, 2006

DEC Announces Informational Meetings on Freshwater Fish Virus -Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation today announced the dates and sites for public informational meetings to be held about Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS). The virus is a pathogen of fish and does not pose any threat to public health.

Relatively common in continental Europe and Japan, prior to 2003 the disease was limited in North America to marine species in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In freshwater, VHS had been associated primarily with trout and salmon. In 2005, a new strain of VHS was determined to be the cause of a kill of freshwater drum and round goby in Lake Ontario's Bay of Quinte (Ontario, Canada) and muskellunge in Michigan waters of Lake St. Clair. This same strain of VHS has now been confirmed in a number of non-salmonid species in Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence River, the Niagara River, Lake Erie and Conesus Lake in New York State. It has been linked to kills of round goby in Lake Ontario and muskellunge, burbot and round goby in the St. Lawrence River. It has also been linked to a die-off of walleye in Conesus Lake.

At the public informational meetings, DEC staff will provide information on VHS, describe the federal and New York State actions taken in response to confirming the presence of VHS in New York waters and others in the Great Lakes system, and answer questions. Meeting attendees will have the opportunity to offer their thoughts, perspectives and viewpoints.

Due to the potential adverse effects of this disease to fish populations and the desire to prevent or delay its spread to other states, in October 2006, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issued a federal order prohibiting the importation of certain species of live fish from Ontario and Quebec and interstate movement of the same species from eight states bordering the Great Lakes. On November 14, 2006, APHIS issued an amended federal order which allowed for movement of live fish under specific circumstances. Subsequent to those federal actions, on November 21, 2006, DEC filed emergency regulations to help prevent the spread of VHS to additional waters within New York State which:

1. Prohibits the commercial collection of bait fish from waters of the State where VHS has been detected. The rule amends State regulations by removing certain waters impacted by VHS from the list of specially designated waters that allow bait fish to be taken for commercial purposes.
2. Limits the personal possession and use of bait fish. The rule limits the number of bait fish that may be possessed to a total of 100, as well as restricts the use of bait fish for personal use to the specific water from which it was collected. This rule does not pertain to the possession of bait fish in the Marine District; and
3. Requires live fish destined for release into the waters of the State to be inspected by certified professionals and be certified to be free of VHS and other serious fish diseases. The rule prohibits the placement of live fish into the waters of the State (including possessing, importing and transporting live fish for purposes of placing them into the waters of the State) unless accompanied by a fish health inspection report issued within the previous 12 months. For all species of freshwater fish, a fish health inspection report shall certify that the fish are free of VHS, Furunculosis, Enteric Red Mouth, Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis Virus, Spring Viremia of Carp Virus, and Heterosporis. For salmon and trout, the fish health reports must also certify that the fish are free of Whirling Disease, Bacterial Kidney Disease, and Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis Virus (IHN). The fish health reports must be issued by an independent, qualified inspector, as well as conform with specific testing methods and procedures.

In addition to enacting emergency regulatory measures, DEC has proposed a permanent rulemaking that is available for public comment until January 22, 2007. Formal public comments on the draft regulation will not be accepted during the informational meetings. The informational sessions (schedule attached) are not part of the formal rulemaking process nor for the purposes of formally receiving public comment on the proposed rulemaking. The draft rulemaking is available at on the DEC website. Public comments can be submitted to DEC by writing to: Shaun Keeler, NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-4750; or by calling DEC at (518) 402-8920.

The schedule for the VHS informational sessions is as follows:

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