NY: Horses in Amish community in Cattaraugus Co., dying of unidentified disease; possibly neurological

[Catbird]

"Officials baffled over local horses’ deaths

July 9, 2013

Several horses owned by Amish residents of Conewango Valley in western Cattaraugus County are mysteriously dying.

Eric Wohlers, director of the Cattaraugus County Health Department’s Environmental Unit, said officials from the state Department of Agriculture and markets “are completely baffled” over the Amish horse deaths that appear to involve unspecified neurological problems.

“They submitted samples for testing, but all the tests have come back negative,” Mr. Wohlers told members of the Board of Health meeting last week in Allegany. “Reports of new (horse) illnesses seem to be low.”

Mr. Wohlers speculated “the Amish lifestyle revolves around horses for transportation. (Horses) are always in contact with each other.”

Mr. Wohlers said the Amish horse illness and deaths appear to be centered in the Conewango Valley area. He did not say how many horses in the Amish community had become ill with the neurological problem, or how many died.

Contracted Monday, Joe Morrissey, public information director for the Department of Agriculture and Markets, said, “Our field staff became aware of rumors of this issue a couple of months ago. Accordingly, animals that appeared to match the description of this illness were sampled for diseases of greatest concern to our department. Testing, to date, has not revealed rabies or equine herpes virus 1. The Department of Agriculture and Markets continues to monitor the situation.”...

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[AnnaLisa]

Re: NY: Horses in Amish community in Cattaraugus Co., dying of unidentified disease; possibly neurological

Is there any fracking going on in that region?

 

[NS1]

Re: NY: Horses in Amish community in Cattaraugus Co., dying of unidentified disease; possibly neurological

Is there any fracking going on in that region?

Are you thinking frac chemicals, environmental toxin or release of environmental pathogen?

 

[Emily]

Re: NY: Horses in Amish community in Cattaraugus Co., dying of unidentified disease; possibly neurological

I wondered about fracking, too. I didn't see reports of the controversial chemically enhanced fracking or a disposal well in the area so far, but I was surprised to see that waste water from conventional gas extraction is being being sprayed on roads for dust control and de-icing purposes.

This document downplays risks to pedestrians, but what about animals? (Horses can reach through fences to drink or graze.) What if runoff gets into a pond?

An Investigation of Naturally Occurring Radioactive
Materials (NORM) in Oil and Gas Wells in New York State
April, 1999
[snip]
Runoff of brine used in snow and ice control on paved roads might have the tendency to concentrate NORM in drainage ditches or swales along the roads. This could result in higher NORM concentrations in the ditches than on dirt roads. However, the exposure scenarios associated with ditches are expected to be considerably less than for pedestrians on roads, and the conclusion stated above remains. Ditches are removed from the direct path
of pedestrians. Also, due to the lower elevation of ditch bottoms, the dirt serving as the walls of the ditches shields people traveling the road from direct exposure.

 

[AnnaLisa]

Re: NY: Horses in Amish community in Cattaraugus Co., dying of unidentified disease; possibly neurological

Yes, I was thinking some environmental toxin. I don't know if they are fracking in or near that area. I would be concerned also about discharge of those chemicals into waterways. The more I learn about fracking, the more concern I have about it.