The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Region 6 Office will conduct a winter surveillance study for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in portions of the towns of Westmoreland and Verona, Oneida County, during the early part of 2009, Regional Director Judy Drabicki announced today. The study involves a targeted collection of adult deer in close proximity to the two sites where the disease was first confirmed in 2005.

Sampling will take place within two-mile radius circles (approximately 25 square miles total) of the initial deer-farm detection site in Westmoreland, and the initial "wild" detection site in Verona. A maximum sample is 50 deer from each location will be used in the study, generated from a combination of hunter-killed deer from the 2008 big game season, road-killed deer and DEC/staff collection. Deer sampling efforts will only take place on lands where owner permission is granted and during a two-week period in February, pending suitable weather conditions.

Chronic Wasting Disease was first found in New York State in two captive Oneida County deer herds in 2005. Five deer tested positive out of 22. The DEC then confirmed the disease in two wild white-tailed deer through intensive sampling of 292 free ranging wild deer in April 2005. Regulations were enacted to control the spread of the disease and to determine the presence and prevalence of CWD in an established "Containment Area" which consists of 18 towns in Oneida County and three towns in Madison County.

Although it was fully expected that additional CWD cases would be detected, no new cases have been discovered following intensive road-kill collection and mandatory hunter checks from 2005 to 2008. That covers approximately 6,300 samples. New York is unique among the 11 states and two Canadian provinces with identified wild deer CWD infections. Current "best science" suggests that targeted deer collection in close proximity to original points of detection is the best method to see if there is a continued presence of the disease in the area.

Information developed through the targeted sampling effort, in conjunction with ongoing surveillance efforts within the larger Containment Area, will better inform managers on future decisions concerning deer and hunter management with regard to CWD in the Containment Area.

CWD is a transmissible disease that affects the brain and central nervous system of deer and elk and is fatal. There is no evidence that CWD is linked to disease in humans or domestic livestock. For more information on CWD in New York State, go to the DEC website.