Protest planned for British badger cull

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LONDON, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Opponents of a proposed cull of badgers in Britain say they'll set up a protest camp on property owned by the royal family.

Britain's Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has given the go-ahead for a pilot cull to test whether shooting free-running badgers can help stop the spread of bovine tuberculosis.

Farmers claim badgers can spread the cattle disease and want to kill off the disease in wildlife.

Dunster Estate, owned by the Crown, is included in the proposed cull area in West Somerset, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

A spokesman for Stop the Cull said a protest camp would be set up on the 3,800-acre estate, which includes a number of historic properties.

"As soon as the cull starts we are going to set up protest camp on the Crown Estate," he said. "They can come and evict us but it will be very costly."

A spokesman for the Crown Estate, which manages the Queen's property, said farmers on the estate have been given permission to take part in the cull.

"The Crown Estate recognizes that Bovine TB is a major problem for farmers, including our tenants, and is cooperating with Natural England to allow access to our land for the pilot schemes, where required," the spokesman said.