Britain to begin badger cull in TB fight

LONDON, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Britain says a cull of badgers meant to reduce cattle tuberculosis will begin in two areas, but the exact locations are being kept secret for security reasons.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs only gave the locations as west Gloucestershire and west Somerset, the BBC reported Thursday.

Culling would begin in August and last for six weeks, and would likely be expanded to other areas in the future, officials said.

Culling can address a disease that is costing about $150 million per year and causing the death of tens of thousands of cattle, they said.

"Nobody wants to cull badgers," Agriculture Minister Jim Paice said.

"But no country in the world where wildlife carries TB has eradicated the disease in cattle without tackling it in wildlife too."

Opponents of the cull argue it is not a cost-effective way of tackling the disease.

They cite studies suggesting culling can disturb the badgers' normal social structure, forcing them to range outside their usual territories and potentially spreading the tuberculosis to other cattle farms.