Due to the sudden morbidity and high mortality in the event of an outbreak of HPAI coupled with the fact that to date no efficacious treatment is available and in accordance with the relevant state legislation, once poultry is verified as HPAI infected, all poultry within a 3-km radius should be culled. The remains are subject to deep burial with contamination disposed off on a bio-safety basis. This ensures that the epidemic can be quickly stamped out, the sources of contagion wiped out and the economic losses reduced. Such means of eradicating bird flu are effective.

(China.org.cn February 13, 2004)