Help! Bird flu deaths overwhelming disposal

With avian influenza continuing to wreck havoc in northwest Iowa, poultry producers may get some help disposing of more than 20 million chickens, turkeys and ducks infected by the deadly virus, officials said Wednesday.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has issued three temporary permits to a Massachusetts company that would allow it to set up large portable incinerators in Sioux, Kossuth and Cherokee counties to help in the disposal of several million infected birds that have died from the disease or have been destroyed to prevent its spread.

A fourth permit for another incinerator is possible, depending on the need, said Kevin Baskins, a DNR spokesman.

The permits comes as some landfill operators hesitate to accept the growing number of dead birds, fearing contamination.

On Wednesday, six more bird flu cases were announced, including the state's first outbreak in a backyard flock — ducks in O'Brien County. The other outbreaks reported Wednesday were at three commercial egg-laying operations and a pullet farm with young hens, all in Sioux County. All have been quarantined.

They push to 34 the number of turkey, chicken and now duck flocks that have been infected with the H5N2 virus.

Altogether, birds in 11 counties have been infected. Most of the facilities are commercial operations in northwest Iowa, with one in central Iowa's Madison County.

Looking for help from landfills

As producers grapple with euthanizing infected poultry, the state agency is encouraging landfills to accept some of the millions of birds that have died or been destroyed to help contain the disease.

In a letter to state landfills Wednesday, Iowa DNR Director Chuck Gipp and Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey say producers need all the disposal options available — landfill, onsite burial, composting and incineration — given the "unprecedented volume" of birds that have been infected.

"This disease will ultimately result in tens of millions of dead chickens and turkeys," wrote Gipp and Northey in the letter.

The birds need to be disposed of in a way that protects the environment and prevents the disease's spread, they said.

Larry Oldenkamp, director of operations at Northwest Iowa Area Solid Waste Agency, said local leaders have been hesitant to accept some of the 9.7 million birds that have been infected in the counties the agency serves — Sioux, O'Brien, Osceola, Clay and Lyon. All but Lyon have infected commercial poultry facilities.

So far, several operations struggling with the disease are dealing with disposal on-site.

For example, Sunrise Farm in Osceola County has composted about 2 million of about 3.4 million hens infected, the state said. And Rembrandt Enterprises, the nation's largest outbreak with nearly 5.7 million laying hens, also is composting, the state said.

A facility in Kossuth County that raised breeding chickens plans to bury 18,791 infected birds. State DNR is providing guidance on where that can be done without contaminating water supplies or creating other environmental concerns, Baskins said.

Oldenkamp said chief among concerns is whether transporting and disposing of birds infected with H5N2 could infect poultry operations near the landfill.

"We have to worry about our neighbors," said Oldenkamp, who has been working with DNR to address lingering concerns. "We've got quite a few operations within five miles — maybe four or five."

RELATED:What the bird flu disaster proclamation says

Disease's spread still unknown

The federal government has struggled to determine how bird flu is spreading since it was discovered five months ago, despite heightened biosecurity efforts such as changing clothes and boots before entering barns, and disinfecting equipment and vehicles.

"We know it's spreading somehow, but we don't know how. That's the kicker," Oldenkamp said.

Scientists believe the virus is spread by migratory birds such as ducks and geese that leave their droppings on farms. But some also have speculated that farm workers are unknowingly transporting bird flu, or it is spreading on dust or bird feathers blown by the wind.

State and federal health officials have stressed that they consider the risk to people from the virus to be low. No human infections with the virus have been detected and there is no food safety risk for consumers.

Clean Harbors, a national provider of environmental, energy and industrial services based in Norwell, Mass., has been contracted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to transport and dispose of the dead birds. Clean Harbors, which is publicly traded, also sought and received the state air emission permits to operate three incinerators.

Clean Harbors declined to comment on its work in Iowa, referring questions to the USDA and the state ag agency. Neither agency was available to comment.

Landfills such as Northwest Iowa Solid Waste and the Metro Waste Authority in Polk County are still deciding whether they should accept dead birds.

"We are looking at it, but we haven't a final determination yet," Reo Menning, executive director of Metro Waste Authority, which serves Des Moines and other central Iowa communities.

"We know that landfills have been a disposal option that's been very successful in some other states" that have struggled with bird flu, Menning said.

Landfills are good options, she said, because they're "designed to protect the environment."

Transportation security tight

Oldenkamp said biosecurity around infected birds slated to be transported is tight. The birds are placed in "Bio-Zip" bags that decrease the time it takes to compost them, pushing temperatures high enough that also kill the virus. Veterinarians have said that the virus doesn't live long outside a living host.

Baskins, the DNR spokesman, said the birds must sit for three days so high temperatures inside the bag will kill the virus before they're moved.

Landfills also are required to meet certain biosecurity protocols, such as segregating the dead birds and immediately burying them, Baskins said. Trucks also must be disinfected before they leave the landfill sites.

Oldenkamp said his board is concerned about the disposed birds' impact on water that might leach from the landfill. That water is collected and treated off-site.

"It's one of the questions we want to get good answers to," he said.

Menning said each solid waste facility will need to decide if can accept birds for disposal. "Anytime you have something you haven't handled before, you have questions. You want to make sure you're doing the right thing."

Oldenkamp said the decision on whether to accept birds stricken by influenza in northwest Iowa will come from its board.

"It's a pretty important decision," he said.

New bird flu cases

The Iowa Department of Agriculture said Wednesday that six more facilities are believed infected with avian influenza, based on increased incidences of bird deaths..

O'Brien County

• A backyard duck flock ; an estimated number of birds infected wasn't available. Testing was part of monitoring efforts around a previous confirmed case.

Sioux County

A pullet farm , with an estimated 100,000 young hens.

Commercial laying operation with an estimated 100,000 birds.

A pullet farm ; an estimated number of birds infected wasn't available.

Commercial laying operation ; an estimated number of birds infected wasn't available.

Commercial laying operation ; an estimated number of birds infected wasn't available.