EN Official Journal of the European Union C 64/7

COMMISSION DECISION

of 25 February 2011

on the extension of financing of special emergency measures to protect the Union from rabies

2011/C 64/05

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Decision 2009/470/EC of 25 May 2009 on expenditure in the veterinary field (1), and in particular Article 8(2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Council Decision 2009/470/EC provides that where a Member State is directly threatened by the occurrence or development, in the territory of a third country, of a disease listed in the Annex to that Decision, any measure appropriate to the situation may be adopted, including the granting of a financial contribution by the Union towards the measures deemed particularly necessary for the success of the actions undertaken.

(2) Commission Decision 2009/582/EC of 29 July 2009 on the financing of special emergency measures to protect the Community from rabies (2) approved the financing of a 36-month rabies elimination plan in the territory of the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation.

(3) Rabies is an animal disease that mainly affects wild and domestic carnivores and has serious public health implications. Rabies is listed in the Annex to Decision 2009/470/EC.

(4) The territory of the Kaliningrad Region, an exclave of Russia surrounded by EU territory, is adjacent to Member States that are making their final efforts towards complete eradication of the disease. A special measure was necessary to prevent continuing re-infection of neighbouring Member States from Kaliningrad.

(5) Given the relative size of the territory of Kaliningrad, it is more appropriate and cost-efficient to assist the efforts towards the elimination of rabies in Kaliningrad than to put in place a vaccination buffer zone in the territory of the neighbouring Member States which would have to be maintained indefinitely.

(6) As a result of the implementation of the abovementioned plan, wildlife rabies cases have already disappeared from the areas of Lithuania and Poland that are adjacent to the territory of Kaliningrad, according to reports to the Task Force for Monitoring Animal Disease Eradication.

(7) However, the risk for the Union will only disappear if rabies is eliminated from the territory of Kaliningrad which could be achieved in short-term only if the vaccination activities continue uninterruptedly for the following years.

(8) The 36-month plan covered activities from 1 June 2008 and therefore expires on 31 May 2011.

(9) It is necessary that the financial support to the rabies elimination plan in the Kaliningrad Region is extended for a further 36-month period, in order to achieve its objective.

(10) Under Article 110 of the Financial Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 (3), grants are subject to an annual programme. That annual work programme shall be implemented through the publication of calls for proposals, save in duly substantiated exceptional cases of urgency. Under Article 168(1)(b) of the detailed rules for the implementation of the Financial Regulation determined by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 (4), the Commission can decide to award grants without a call for proposals in exceptional and duly substantiated emergencies.

(11) On 25 October 2010, Russia has submitted to the Commission a programme for the elimination of rabies from Kaliningrad region for the period 2011-2014 and that programme was found to be acceptable as regards the objective of protecting the Union against rabies. The actions foreseen in that programme are essential for the protection of Union interest and it is therefore appropriate that certain measures receive Union financing. A Union financial contribution should therefore be granted in 2011 for the implementation of that programme.

(12) The present Decision constitutes a financing Decision within the meaning of Article 75 of the Financial Regulation, Article 90 of the detailed rules for the implementation of the Financial Regulation, and Article 15 of the Internal Rules on the Implementation of the general budget of the European Communities (5).

(13) In addition, Commission Decision 2009/582/EC will become obsolete and should be repealed.

(14) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

1. The 36-month rabies elimination plan in the Kaliningrad Region (‘rabies elimination programme’) submitted by Russia is hereby approved for the period between 1 June 2011 and 31 May 2014.

2. The action under this Decision shall cover the following specific operations:

— purchase of the vaccine baits for the oral immunisation of wild carnivores,

— distribution in the territory of the Kaliningrad region of the vaccine baits referred in the preceding point.

Article 2

The maximum contribution of the European Union is set at EUR 1 800 000 to be financed from budget line 17 04 03 01 of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2011.

Article 3

1. The award of an individual grant to the State Veterinary Agency of the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation ‘Regional Centre for Combating Animal Disease’ (Государственное учреждение ветеринарии Калининградской области „Областная станция по борьбе с болезнями животных“) is authorised.

2. The activities covered by this Decision may be financed up to 100 % of the corresponding eligible costs, provided that part of the total costs of the action is borne by the State Veterinary Agency of the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation ‘Regional Centre for Combating Animal Disease’ (Государственное учреждение ветеринарии Калининградской области „Областная станция по борьбе с болезнями животных“) or by contributions other than the Union contribution.

Article 4

Commission Decision 2009/582/EC is hereby repealed with effect from 31 December 2011.

Done at Brussels, 25 February 2011. For the Commission John DALLI Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 155, 18.6.2009, p. 30.

(2) OJ L 198, 30.7.2009, p. 85.

(3) OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

(4) OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 1.

(5) Commission Decision of 6.4.2009, C(2009) 2105.