The Department of Environmental Conservation is asking that cavers please follow these procedures for decontamination. At this point this is only a request but the caving community can help in the effort to hopefully control this mysterious White Nose Syndrome. We are doing this to prevent what could be a continent wide spread of a previously unidentified pathogen to all caves and mines, and all our cave dwelling bat populations in the east. We do not yet know what is happening, or why, but it could be extremely serious, and we have to assume that it is until we can prove otherwise.

1. Remove your caving gear when you get to the vehicle and put it in a closed plastic bag to prevent contamination of the trunk.

2. Wash caving clothes using hot water, detergent and a normal bleach cycle.

3. Dry the clothes thoroughly and dry them at hot temperatures.

4. Scrape the dirt from boots and soak them in a bleach solution -porous boots longer than nonporous boots. (could find no specified periods for soaking).

5. Do not forget cave packs or helmets/ (lights)

6. Sunlight can also kill many things that live in dark places.

There is the real possibility of some caves being closed. Exit strategy for the cave closures are as follows: 1. We determine that the cause of death is something that people simply could not be spreading. 2. We can determine that decontamination protocols are sufficient to prevent the spread.

In the near future the DEC maybe conducting a survey to gather information for a caver database that will indicate all of your cave visits from the past several years.

If you are in a cave and see a bat (living or dead) with this White Nose Syndrome please contact Al Hicks of the DEC right away. If you find a dead bat outdoors or notice different behavior of bats please contact Al as well.