TRACKING A KILLER — State Wildlife Pathologist Ward Stone prepares a dead bird for autopsy in this file photo. Currently, Stone and his staff are examining hundreds of dead birds every day to detect West Nile virus. The information is key to monitoring the spread of the virus, which can also be deadly to humans.
Up
to Pathologist Ward Stone, staff to track virus’
march across NYS
West Nile virus swamps DEC lab with thousands of dead
birds
By MEL HYMAN
The West Nile virus is just the latest public health
dilemma that’s strained the resources of the state
Wildlife Resources Center in Albany County.
Just a few years ago, a rabies epidemic swept through
parts of New York and state Wildlife Pathologist Ward
Stone was swamped with dead raccoons.
Then, dead turkeys started showing up after they had
snacked on the lawn chemical Diazenon.
This year, the PEF member is deluged with shipments of up
to 300 dead birds every day for possible autopsy and lab
analysis to detect the West Nile virus which is often
fatal to certain birds and can be fatal to humans. Like
canaries in the coal mines, these dead birds (crows
mostly) can tell Stone where and how fast the virus is
spreading.
Once he confirms that the virus has begun killing birds
in a particular area, he notifies local officials who
work with the state Health Department and the Department
of Environmental Conservation to spray for mosquitoes
that can carry the virus.
Harried staff at risk
While media attention is focused on the threat the West
Nile virus poses to the public, especially children and
seniors, the virus also presents a risk to the laboratory
workers — especially when everyone is working as
fast as they can to keep up.
“We know there’s no cure for this virus, so
when someone on staff gets a bone splinter stuck in their
finger (because it can go right through your
gloves),” it can be frightening, Stone said.
In fact, according to Stone, that’s just what
happened to one of the technicians recently. Fortunately,
tests showed the bird did not have the West Nile virus.
Never enough staff
Stone has only a wildlife biologist, a secretary
and a wildlife lab technician as permanent full-time
staff to help him.
The DEC also sometimes hires temporary employees, mostly
to help with the laboratory work. But they are laid off
after three or six months, and Stone now faces loss of
his current crew of part-timers at summer’s end
although the West Nile problem is still raging.
Stone says his lab has been chronically understaffed to
keep up with the state’s need to spot and monitor
potential health and environmental disasters while there
is still time to head them off.
“During my entire 31-year career here, we could have
used quadruple the staff we’ve had, easily,”
Stone said.
Stone sees a glimmer of hope for relief, however, as the
current mosquito-borne health threat has attracted enough
media attention for DEC to support a request for another
full-time technician at the lab.
And DEC’s plans to transfer workers from its Five
Rivers Environmental Center (where the Wildlife Resources
Center is located) to the new DEC headquarters in
downtown Albany could free space at the center for more
staff and equipment in the pathology unit.
Risk of ruffling feathers
DEC’s budget for the Wildlife Resources Center has
been controversial for many years, as some lawmakers,
environmentalists and the media pressed the state to give
it more support while others argued that Stone was a
meddler who refuses to stay within the limits of his
appropriate duties.
Looking back, Stone acknowledged that he has been a vocal
advocate for environmental change. While this may not
have served him well, personally, Stone said his
outspokenness has drawn the public’s attention to
important issues and may lead finally to the recognition
his unit deserves.
“Some people didn’t like the things we
discovered, and there was a lot of hostility to
them,” he recalled. “We did a lot with PCBs and
with Mirex in Lake Ontario. These weren’t popular
things to find, so they had to try to kill the
messenger.”
Stone said the union has been one of his most loyal
supporters over the years.
“Whenever I got into some trouble, PEF always came
to my defense,” he said.
Vincent
Palmer receives Ernest F. Trad Award
Member’s efforts to thwart West Nile virus earn top
DEC award
BY SHERRY HALBROOK
PEF member Vincent Palmer is a “decorated hero”
in the war against mosquitoes and the sometimes deadly
West Nile virus that has threatened New Yorkers’
health last year and again this year.
In late June, just as this year’s mosquito season
cranked up again, state Department of Environmental
Conservation (DEC) Commissioner John Cahill presented
Palmer with the department’s highest individual
employee honor, the Ernest F. Trad Award, a specially
commissioned solid-bronze medallion.
“Vincent Palmer embodied the spirit of public
service during the West Nile virus emergency last fall,
spending countless hours leading DEC’s response to
the situation,” Cahill said.
“It’s wonderful to receive this kind of
recognition for doing my job,” Palmer says.
But he has little time to rest on his laurels.
“The campaign against the West Nile virus has us
going non-stop again this year,” Palmer says.
Overall efforts recognized
The commissioner praised Palmer for effectively promoting
DEC’s mission and positive image “through every
aspect of his work. While pursuing his pesticide
enforcement responsibilities, he is not content just to
enforce the law, but he goes out of his way to help
businesses and individuals understand the importance of
compliance and the steps needed to achieve it.”
As the supervising pesticide control inspector at
DEC’s Long Island regional office in Stony Brook,
Suffolk County, Palmer not only oversees a complex
program there, but is a statewide resource for pesticide
information.
Protecting water supply crucial
Palmer coordinated all pesticide-spraying activities in
Nassau and Suffolk counties last fall during the West
Nile virus emergency and was also the lead consultant on
response activities in New York City.
Cahill commended Palmer for providing crucial assistance
to the state and city health departments right from the
first days of the emergency. Palmer guided the Nassau
County spray program to minimize the effects of pesticide
spraying on surface water, and also developed and
supervised a surface water-sampling program to
demonstrate that the water remained safe and
uncontaminated.
Better prepared for this year
As days grew colder and last year’s crisis faded,
Palmer represented DEC at a U.S. Centers For Disease
Control (CDC) meeting in November on the West Nile virus
and planning mosquito-control activities for this year.
Then, Palmer oversaw the development of a detailed,
comprehensive mosquito-control manual that is now being
used by every municipality in the state that is using
mosquito-control measures this year.
Palmer also helped the state Health Department (DOH)
develop its companion document on the West Nile virus.
He has also co-chaired the development of the Long Island
Pesticide Management Plan, which addresses the use of
pesticides on Long Island and their affect on
groundwater. The plan — which is being developed as
a joint effort of DEC, DOH, the state Department of
Agriculture and Markets, and Nassau and Suffolk counties
— will be the basis for a statewide
pesticide-management plan.