[Glin-announce] Announcing the Great Lakes Botulism Network and Management Initiative

Announcing the Great Lakes Botulism Network and Management Initiative


       Great Lakes government agencies and members of academia met in
the Detroit area in June 2008 to assess the state of knowledge,
research, management and control options for type E botulism at the
“Great Lakes Basinwide Botulism Coordination Workshop”.  There was
broad-based support for continuing the professional discussions and
information sharing that occurred at this meeting. In particular, there
was a consensus that the establishment of a botulism coordination
network would advance ongoing agency activities and help identify new
collaborative projects for future implementation.

       A "Great Lakes Botulism Coordination Network" is being formed as
a result.  This Network  will be a voluntary partnership of
representatives of government agencies, academic institutions, and
involved stakeholders whose mission is to:

* Exchange information pertaining to type E botulism matters in the
Great Lakes basin by working through the existing partnerships,
establishment of new networking relationships, and building upon
existing programs;

* Communicate botulism information and advice (technical, policy or
other) related to the ecosystem of the Great Lakes basin to stakeholders
(including the public) through member organizations, as required;

* Influence and support the coordination of botulism activities,
including: laboratory research and field investigations, environmental
management decisions, and response actions in the Great Lakes basin.

More information (including a copy of the Great Lakes Basinwide Botulism
Coordination Workshop Final Report) can be found at:
http://glrc.us/initiatives/botulism/index.html.

      Additionally, The Charter for Botulism Coordination and Response
Initiative is available at:
http://glrc.us/initiatives/botulism/charter.html

      It is expected that a principal focus of the Network will be the
identification of causal mechanism for the type E botulism outbreaks and
implementation of management actions which will mitigate related
impacts. Additional activities may also be identified by the Network.
For example, as part of a follow-up to the workshop, a variety of
agencies have begun to develop a manual of botulism outbreak standard
operating procedures for carcass collection and disposal, lessons
learned, and best management practices.  The manual will benefit from
existing agency guidelines and past experiences. We look forward to
identifying other joint efforts through our conversations.

      The network's administrative tasks will be provided by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency Great Lakes National Program Office.
Laura Evans (evans.laura at epa.gov, 312-886-0851) will serve as the
network administrator, and should be contacted if more information is
desired.