Gov`t to send more SDF members to tackle foot-and-mouth disease

TOKYO, May 17 Kyodo -
The government decided Monday to dispatch more Self-Defense Forces members to
Miyazaki to help tackle the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the
southwestern Japan prefecture.
At the first meeting of its task force of all Cabinet ministers, the government
also decided to expand areas in the prefecture to be disinfected to cope with
the escalating outbreak.
The Finance Ministry is eyeing spending about 10 billion yen but the figure may
swell as the outbreak has caused the worst damage from the disease in Japan --
at some 16 billion yen as estimated by the government so far.
As of Sunday, more than 110 farms and facilities in the prefecture have been
found to have cows, pigs and other livestock suspected of being infected with
the disease, with a total of more than 85,000 domesticated animals subject to
slaughtering, according to the prefecture.
At the first meeting at the prime minister's office, Prime Minister Yukio
Hatoyama vowed to ''make utmost efforts'' to prevent the spread of the disease
and provide support to farmers.
''We have to create a situation to reassure farmers hit by the disease and
people in Miyazaki Prefecture over this problem,'' Hatoyama said. ''We'd like
to make steady efforts to seek an early solution through cooperation between
the local and central governments.''
The government also decided to assign about 20 government officials including
the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry's senior vice minister and an
assistant to the prime minister to the task force at the prefectural office to
prevent further spread of the disease.
The task force's main assignments include providing financial support to
farmers and making arrangements with related ministries, according to Chief
Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano.
Senior Vice Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda told a news conference that the
government plans to utilize reserves in the fiscal 2010 budget to deal with the
problem.
==Kyodo