How to Handle Pigs with Swine Fever and the Impact of Deep Burial on Groundwater Quality

This year, multiple outbreaks of African swine fever occurred in many places across our country, and they are still continuously affecting our country's pig industry. This year, many farmers suffered massive pig deaths due to the African swine fever epidemic, with extremely severe losses. For the large number of dead pigs, how to handle them is also a very headache-inducing matter. So how should pigs with swine fever be handled? Will digging a pit for deep burial affect groundwater quality?

1. How should pigs with swine fever be handled?

1. When a suspected case of African swine fever occurs, it must be reported promptly. It must not be concealed, and even more so, it must not be handled privately.

2. Dead pigs from disease must not be sold off at will. According to relevant national laws and regulations, selling or discarding dead pigs from disease is an illegal and criminal act, and relevant legal liability will be pursued.

3. Before relevant departments have confirmed that it is African swine fever, false information must not be fabricated at will to create social panic, otherwise relevant legal sanctions will also be imposed.

African swine fever is a highly contagious disease with a high incidence rate and a high mortality rate. At present, there is no vaccine, let alone effective therapeutic drugs. Once African swine fever is confirmed, infected and diseased pigs must all be culled, and then harmless treatment must be carried out in accordance with relevant national regulations. Commonly used harmless treatment generally includes: burial method, incineration method, rendering method, fermentation method, etc. At present, the most commonly used, simplest, most practical, and easiest to operate method in China is the burial method.

2. Will digging a pit for deep burial of pigs with swine fever affect groundwater quality?

As long as it is strictly implemented in accordance with the National Standard of the People's Republic of China, “Biosafety Processing Regulations for Diseased Animals and Diseased Animal Products,” it will not cause an impact on groundwater quality. The provisions for harmless treatment by the burial method are as follows:

1. Selection of burial location: The burial site should be far away from schools, public places, residential areas, villages, animal raising and slaughtering sites, drinking water sources, rivers, and other areas.

2. Operational specifications required during burial: Generally, the pit depth must not be less than 2.5 m. A layer of lime 5 cm thick is generally spread at the bottom of the pit, and the culled pigs are thrown into the pit. The contaminated soil layer and the things used to tie the pigs are also thrown into the pit, then a thick layer of lime is spread, and then soil is used to cover it. The thickness of the covering soil layer must not be less than 1.5 m. After burial, it should be level with the surrounding ground.