Chronic Wasting Disease a concern as hunting season begins

CHENEY – The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is conducting an intensive surveillance program to monitor possible cases of Chronic Wasting Disease in regional populations of deer, elk, moose, etc.

The monitoring program comes as hunting season gets underway. It is legislatively funded and being implemented after multiple case were found less than 200 miles away in Libby, Mont.

“Chronic Wasting Disease is a definite risk to the area being as close as Libby,” Spokane District Wildlife Biologist Michael Atamian said.

Atamian is the biologist for District No. 2 in Washington, and he said the...