March 25, 2010

Western Australia opens new livestock quarantine yard

A new A$2.25 million (US$2.05) quarantine facility has been set up in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia to monitor growing livestock movements from the eastern states.

WA Agriculture and Food Minister Terry Redman said the new livestock yards would inspect about 2,000 livestock vehicles a year as part of quarantine processes to guard against introduced pests and diseases into the western region.

"There is an increasing number of livestock being imported into WA by road, which means the biosecurity risk is also on the rise," stated Redman.

He added that the absence of many agricultural pests and diseases in WA has given farmers an economic advantage in terms of improved market access and lower production costs.

The inspection facility on the outskirts of Kalgoorlie-Boulder is a replacement of the historic Parkeston yards, built in 1921 as a transfer depot for livestock transported from road to rail.

The yards are capable of accommodating cattle, horses, sheep, goats and camels.