THE first shots have been fired in the second round of the Government's four-year pilot badger cull in West Somerset. Although no official announcement was made until after the cull had begun on Monday, opponents were well briefed and were on the ground trying to either monitor or disrupt the shooting. Up to 785 badgers are due to be killed in the next six weeks in West Somerset as part of a Government bid to try and curb the spread of tuberculosis in cattle. Environment secretary Elizabeth Truss, who took over from Owen Paterson earlier this year, said the cull was part of a wider strategy designed to eliminate the disease completely. "We are pursuing a comprehensive strategy supported by leading vets which includes cattle movement controls, vaccinating badgers in edge areas and culling badgers where the disease is rife. "This is vital for the future of our beef and dairy industries, and our nation's food security. "At present we have the highest rates of bovine TB in Europe. "Doing nothing is not an option and that is why we are taking a responsible approach to dealing with bovine TB," she said. Badgers can carry tuberculosis and many in the farming industry blame them for spreading the disease to cattle. Opponents to the cull blame poor farm management for the spread of TB and say there is no scientific proof that killing badgers will curb the disease. They want to see a comprehensive vaccination scheme of both badgers and cattle across the country. Dominic Dyer, chief executive of the Badger Trust, said continuing with the cull was "a triumph of politics, pride and persecution over common sense and science". "These culls are ill-conceived and incompetently managed, and will contribute nothing to reducing TB in cattle," he said. Last year's cull was monitored by an independent panel of experts who ruled that it had been ineffective and inhumane as not enough animals had been killed to prevent the spread of TB and many animals had suffered lingering deaths. This year's cull is not being monitored by an independent panel, but farm minister George Eustice insisted the Government had taken the panel's comments on board and marksmen had been given additional training. He said the culls were a "vital element" of the Government's approach to beating bovine TB. "Last year, 400 farms in Somerset . . . were under the grip of this terrible disease and 2,629 cattle in Somerset had to be slaughtered," said Mr Eustice. "Sitting back and letting this situation continue is simply not an option." Activists have once again set up Camp Badger near Halse and are using it as a base before setting out into the fields and woods of West Somerset every evening. The renamed Somerset Badger Patrol - formerly the Somerset Wounded Badger Patrol - is also meeting in Williton's Killick Way car park every evening during the six-week cull. Volunteers are invited to gather between 7pm and 8.30pm before heading out into the countryside to monitor the cull in "a peaceful, law-abiding and non-confrontational" manner. A number of other groups are also operating in the district and are using "direct action", including the destruction of badger cage traps, to disrupt the killing.