06/24/09

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) _ Federal officials and livestock agencies
in Wyoming, Idaho and Montana have reached a broad agreement to
fundamentally alter the government's approach to brucellosis, a
costly animal disease that causes pregnant cattle and other animals
to miscarry.

The Yellowstone region is the last domestic reservoir of the
disease, which persists in wild bison and elk.

After meeting with representatives of the three Yellowstone
states last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released a
tentative plan Wednesday to scrap its existing brucellosis rules.
They would be replaced with rules that are less stringent for most
of the country, but stricter in parts of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming
surrounding Yellowstone National Park.

The proposal must overcome skepticism from Yellowstone-area
ranchers and from veterinarians in other parts of the country.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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