Almodovar: GNR Invest morte “strange” of 25 cows.
Twenty-five cows at a cattle farm in the municipality of Almodovar, no Beja district, Alentejo, They died from “strangely” due to a rise of intoxication still unknown and GNR is investigating the case.
cows “died strangely, because it is not normal to die so many animals at once and in such a short space of time”, said today the agency Lusa, according to the online edition of the Journal News (JN) veterinary of Mount Caiada, Rita Vilanova.
“It intoxication, I have no doubt that, but the strange thing is have affected so many animals and in such a short space of time”, said, stating that he had never encountered a similar situation.
On the afternoon of Sunday, an employee was in the grassland area of 54 cows on the holding, saw that “everything was ordinary” and it went away, but when he returned, on Monday, to 07:00, found 15 dead animals and the wire of the electric fence that borders the party area.
With the broken wire, some of the cows left the area bounded by the fence and had access to an area of ​​Oeiras river, what, and currently due to drought, “is not running” and has several caught in stagnant water.
exploitation of employees headed cows were still near the river back to the pasture area and, “on the way, died five”. The remaining eventually die later, said.
The cows were killed “intoxicated by anything harmful ingesting”, said Rita Vilanova, admitting water which may have been drunk or some toxic plant that ate caught in one of the stream.
“This time of year, Drought, water the streams are bad, because they are virtually dry and have only caught by stagnant water and of very poor quality and that can cause problems for animals, as diarrhea, but a mortality of these cows do not seem”, said.
Rita Vilanova admitted the chance to be a “high concentration of heavy metals” in water that cows have drunk caught in the stream of Oeiras, where the concessionaire of the Neves-Corvo mine, the company Somincor, makes discharges.
On the other hand, He explained, toxic plants “They are usually green” and, this time of year, They are in damp places near water courses, as banks.
“I'm curious to know the cause of death of animals”, said, noting that the situation caused a “significant loss” the owner of the farm, because it lost almost half of the effective and most cows that died were new, They were pregnant and would give birth start from this month and to surrender.
To determine the cause of death of animals, Rita Vilanova said she, the owner of the farm, the Portuguese Environment Agency, SOMINCOR and municipal veterinary Almodôvar collected for analysis of water samples from the stream place where the cows and were supposed to have drunk.
Rita Vilanova also collected for analysis of liver samples, kidney and stomach three cows who died content.
The municipal veterinary Almodovar, Catarina Afonso, told Lusa that, A pedido da GNR, He has been in the exploration and collected bodies of the dead cows for possible analysis.
“For the analysis of the clinical condition of the animals that died, give me idea that it is compatible deaths with a case of poisoning, but without knowing the causative agent can not do anything”, finished.
Speaking to Lusa, the public relations officer of the Territorial Command Beja GNR, Captain Daniel Ferreira, He said today that the Territorial Detachment of the GNR Almodovar became aware of the case last Tuesday, through a fair complaint by the owner of the farm, and activated a team of Nature Protection Service and the Environment.
The team was on the farm, He confirmed the death of 25 cows, collected evidence and proof of the facts reported to prosecutors.
The case is being investigated by the Territorial Detachment of the GNR Almodovar, said Captain.
Contacted by Lusa, the public relations Somincor, Dina Diogo, said the company, so was informed of “sudden and strange” death of 25 cows, contacted representatives of the exploration and the competent authorities.
“We are all working together to investigate the causes of the incident” and, “Until now, there is no factor or evidence leading to believe that the death of the cows was the result of Somincor activity”, said.
According to Dina Diogo, discharges made by Somincor in Oeiras river were “and controlled in accordance with environmental parameters” and the last was made last May.
The Somincor monitors “regularly” the river water quality, through analysis, and, to the death of cows, “all parameters were normal”, said, stressing that, beyond 25 cows, It was not detected “no more dead animal”.
