Qld properties surveyed in effort to speed EI-free declaration

A six-week surveillance operation is to be conducted aimed at accelerating Queensland being declared free of equine influenza (EI).
Queensland's chief vet Ron Glanville says no new cases have been discovered since Christmas Day.
He says at this stage there are no equine influenza infected properties in Queensland and the state should be declared free of horse flu quite soon.
"The longer we go without any new infections the more confident we get, but we're hoping to have all this work completed by mid to late March," he said.
Just over 1,000 properties will be sampled throughout the Amber and Red Zones in southern Queenland.
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh says it is a major milestone in the ongoing program to control and eradicate the disease.