BAKGRUNN (fra kommisjonsbeslutningen, engelsk utgave)

(1) African swine fever is an infectious viral disease affecting domestic and feral pig populations and can have a severe impact on the profitability of pig farming causing disturbance to trade within the Union and exports to third countries.

(2) In the event of an outbreak of African swine fever, there is a risk that the disease agent may spread to other pig holdings and to feral pigs. As a result, it may spread from one Member State to another Member State and to third countries through trade in live pigs or their products.

(3) Council Directive 2002/60/EC lays down minimum measures to be applied within the Union for the control of African swine fever. Article 9 of Directive 2002/60/EC provides for the establishment of protection and surveillance zones in the event of outbreaks of that disease where the measures laid down in Articles 10 and 11 of that Directive are to apply.

(4) Poland has informed the Commission of the current African swine fever situation on its territory, and in accordance with Article 9 of Directive 2002/60/EC, it has established protection and surveillance zones where the measures referred to in Articles 10 and 11 of that Directive are applied.

(5) In order to prevent any unnecessary disturbance to trade within the Union and to avoid unjustified barriers to trade being imposed by third countries, it is necessary to describe at Union level the areas established as protection and surveillance zones for African swine fever in accordance with Directive 2002/60/EC in Poland in collaboration with that Member State.

(6) In August 2016, one outbreak occurred in domestic pigs in the powiat moniecki in Poland. Given that Poland provides preliminary evidence that this outbreak is linked to human activity and that there are indications that African swine fever is not circulating in the feral pig population in the areas concerned, specific measures in addition to those laid down by Commission Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU are required, taking into account that this is the fifteenth outbreak of this disease in pigs this year and that these outbreaks occurred in different areas of Poland which were already under restriction.

(7) In order to adequately respond to this situation in a precautionary and efficient manner, it is important to lay down specific measures restricting the movement of animals and their products in the areas described in the Annex to this Decision. These measures are justified because of the typology of outbreaks reported in domestic pigs and their underlying causes.

(8) Given the relatively large distances between the most recent outbreaks which are provisionally ascribed by Poland to the human factor as well as recent epidemiological data and in order to prevent further outbreaks, it is now necessary and proportionate to cover significantly larger regions.

(9) The measures laid down in this Decision should consist in the application of the measures provided for by Directive 2002/60/EC, in particular with respect to the strict limitations of the movement and transport of pigs as provided for by Articles 10 and 11 of that Directive in areas as described in the Annex to this Decision.

(10) Accordingly, the areas identified as protection and surveillance zones in Poland should be set out in the Annex to this Decision and the duration of that regionalisation fixed.

(11) Commission Implementing Decisions (EU) 2016/1406 and (EU) 2016/1452 set certain protective measures relating to African swine fever in Poland. Since their adoption the epidemiological situation of this disease has changed and the measures need to be adapted. For reasons of clarity, Implementing Decisions (EU) 2016/1406 and (EU) 2016/1452 should therefore be repealed and replaced by this Decision.

(12) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed.