[News Terms] Partial Opening of 'ASF Barrier Fence' to Protect Sanyang

To Block ASF with 100% Fatality Rate, Approximately 3,000 km Installed
In May, 20 Fence Sections of 2-4m Opened to Protect Wildlife

The 'ASF Blocking Fence' is a fence installed to prevent the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF).

When the first ASF infection case was confirmed in South Korea in September 2019, the Ministry of Environment and local governments installed approximately 3,000 km of fencing nationwide from November of that year until May 2022 to block the spread of ASF. The government-installed wide-area fences and fences in densely populated farming areas measure 1,831 km and 113 km respectively, while the secondary fences and electric fences installed by local governments measure 908 km and 147 km respectively.

In August 2021, quarantine officials are carrying out culling at a pig farm in Naechon-myeon, Hongcheon-gun, Gangwon Province, where African Swine Fever (ASF) occurred.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

ASF is a viral hemorrhagic pig disease spreading worldwide. It does not infect humans or other animals, only animals belonging to the Suidae family are infected.

Wild pigs in Africa such as the black warthog and bush pig, as well as wild boars in Europe and the Americas, serve as ASF virus carrier hosts. Besides pigs, blood-sucking soft ticks carry the virus and transmit the disease by biting pigs or wild boars.

The virus rarely infects animals outside the Suidae family and is harmless if it does, but it can attach to the bodies of humans and other animals and be transferred. Since there is no vaccine or treatment, the mortality rate reaches 100% upon infection, causing enormous damage to the pig farming industry.

Europe bans pig farming for 5 to 10 years after incineration at combined heat and power plants

When ASF occurs, it must be immediately reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), and international trade related to pigs must be halted immediately. South Korea manages ASF as a first-class statutory infectious disease under the Livestock Infectious Disease Control Act.

The ASF virus is persistent enough to survive for six months even under refrigeration, so incineration is the only method of disposal. In countries like France, the Netherlands, and Germany, infected pigs were sent to waste incineration plants (combined heat and power plants) for incineration, and pig farming was completely banned for about 5 to 10 years in ASF outbreak areas after incineration.

In the Netherlands, a pig farming ban law was enacted, and from 1988 to 2001, all Suidae within the country were incinerated before purchasing American pig breeds and restarting pig farming, illustrating how serious ASF is as an animal disease.

The Ministry of Environment held an expert advisory meeting on the 12th to protect mountain goats in the northern Gangwon region and discussed a pilot project to partially open the ASF blocking fence to assess its impact on the ecosystem.

Among the wide-area fences installed by the Ministry of Environment, 64% (1,179 km) are located in the Gangwon region. The main purpose of the fence is to prevent ASF spread caused by wild boars crossing over from North Korea.

The issue is that the fence is said to block the movement of other wildlife, especially mountain goats, threatening their survival. Mountain goats are a natural monument and a first-class endangered wild species.

Ministry of Environment to open 20 fence sections 2?4 m wide on May 20... Is the fence causing deaths?

According to the Cultural Heritage Administration, 537 mountain goats died from last November until the 23rd of last month, and it is presumed that the ASF blocking fence blocked their movement in a situation where heavy snow made it difficult to find food.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In November?December 2022 and January?February last year, only 2 and 13 mountain goats died respectively, so an unusually large number of mountain goats lost their lives last winter. Since last November, 214 mountain goats have been rescued by the Ministry of Environment in northern Gangwon.

The Ministry of Environment plans to conduct a one-year ecological impact survey of the ASF blocking fence starting next month, and as part of the survey, will carry out a pilot project to open 20 fence sections 2 to 4 meters wide. The 20 locations will be selected based on opinions from the advisory meeting, focusing on mountain goat habitats, wildlife corridors, and protected areas such as national parks.

However, the Ministry of Environment has not taken a clear stance on whether the ASF blocking fence was the main cause of mountain goat deaths last winter. At the same time, the Ministry maintains that the ASF blocking fence is a measure that 'delayed the spread of ASF, buying time for response,' and insists on its necessity.