Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1261 of 20 June 2025 amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 concerning certain emergency measures relating to sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria (notified under document C(2025) 4073)
Date: 2025-06-20
Institutions: Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission
Subjects: Bulgaria, Burgas region, Haskovo region, animal disease, goat, sheep, veterinary inspection, viral disease








L_202501261EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
L series













2025/1261


26.6.2025







            COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION (EU) 2025/1261
of 20 June 2025
         
amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 concerning certain emergency measures relating to sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria


(notified under document C(2025) 4073)


(Only the Bulgarian text is authentic)
(Text with EEA relevance)


THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

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


Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on transmissible animal diseases and amending and repealing certain acts in the area of animal health (‘Animal Health Law’) (1), and in particular Article 259(1) thereof,

Whereas:







(1)


Sheep pox and goat pox is an infectious viral disease affecting caprine and ovine animals and can have a severe impact on the concerned animal population and the profitability of farming causing disturbance to movements of consignments of those animals and products thereof within the Union and exports to third countries.












(2)


In the event of an outbreak of sheep pox and goat pox in caprine or ovine animals, there is a serious risk of the spread of that disease to other establishments of caprine or ovine animals.












(3)


Commission Delegated Regulation 2020/687 (2) supplements the rules for the control of the listed diseases referred to in Article 9(1), points (a), (b) and (c), of Regulation (EU) 2016/429, and defined as category A, B and C diseases in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1882 (3). In particular, Articles 21 and 22 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 provide for the establishment of a restricted zone in the event of an outbreak of a category A disease, including sheep pox and goat pox, and for certain measures to be applied therein. In addition, Article 21(1) of that Delegated Regulation provides that the restricted zone is to comprise a protection zone, a surveillance zone, and, if necessary, further restricted zone around or adjacent to the protection and surveillance zones.












(4)


Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 (4) was adopted, on 5 June 2025, within the framework of Regulation (EU) 2016/429. It specifies certain emergency measures relating to sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria.












(5)


More particularly, Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 provides that the protection and surveillance zones to be established by that Member State, following an outbreak of sheep pox and goat pox, in accordance with Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687, are to comprise at least the areas listed in the Annex to that Implementing Decision.












(6)


Since the date of adoption of Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160, Bulgaria has notified the Commission of one additional outbreak of sheep pox and goat pox in an establishment where ovine animals are kept, located in the region of Burgas, approximately ninety kilometres away from the outbreaks in Haskovo, outside the protection and surveillance zones listed in the Annex to this Implementing Decision.












(7)


In light of the epidemiological situation concerning sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria, and notably taking into account this new outbreak, the emergency measures foreseen in Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 should be adjusted, both spatially and temporally, in order to prevent the further spread of the disease in Bulgaria or to the rest of the Union. The updated list of areas where a restricted zone must be established in Bulgaria in respect of sheep pox and goat pox, as well as the envisaged duration of these zones, should therefore be set out in the Annex to this Decision.












(8)


The size of the protection, surveillance zones, and the duration of the measures to be applied therein, is based on the criteria set out in Article 64(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/429, as well as on the rules laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687. The criteria applied for the choice of the size of the protection, surveillance, and further restricted zones, as well as of the duration of the measures to be applied therein, include a consideration of not only the epidemiological situation as regards sheep pox and goat pox in the areas affected by that disease, but also of the overall epidemiological situation of sheep pox and goat pox in the entire territory of Bulgaria, and of the level of risk for the further spread of the disease. The duration of the measures also takes the international standards of the Terrestrial Animal Health Code of the World Organisation for Animal Health (5) into account. In light of these considerations, when applied to the current epidemiological situation concerning sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria, it is necessary to increase the size and duration of the protection and surveillance zones around the outbreak in Burgas region, to prevent further spread of the disease.












(9)


The Annex to Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160, which lists the areas where protection and surveillance zones must be established, should therefore be replaced by the text set out in the Annex to this Decision.












(10)


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





HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:



Article 1
The Annex to Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 is replaced by the text set out in the Annex to this Decision.


Article 2
This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Bulgaria.




Done at Brussels, 20 June 2025.


For the Commission

Olivér VÁRHELYI
            

Member of the Commission






(1)  
            OJ L 84, 31.3.2016, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/429/oj.

(2)  Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 of 17 December 2019 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and the Council, as regards rules for the prevention and control of certain listed diseases (OJ L 174, 3.6.2020, p. 64, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2020/687/oj).

(3)  Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1882 of 3 December 2018 on the application of certain disease prevention and control rules to categories of listed diseases and establishing a list of species and groups of species posing a considerable risk for the spread of those listed diseases (OJ L 308, 4.12.2018, p. 21, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2018/1882/oj).

(4)  Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1160 of 5 June 2025 concerning certain emergency measures relating to sheep pox and goat pox in Bulgaria and repealing Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/948 (OJ L, 2025/1160, 10.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2025/1160/oj).

(5)  
            https://www.woah.org/en/what-we-do/standards/codes-and-manuals/terrestrial-code-online-access/.




ANNEX
Protection and surveillance zones established around the confirmed outbreaks








Region and ADIS reference number of the outbreak




Areas established as protection and surveillance zones, part of the restricted zone in Bulgaria referred to in Article 1




Date until applicable






Region of Haskovo

BG-CAPRIPOX-2025-00004
BG-CAPRIPOX-2025-00005


Protection zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 3 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 41.7231, Long. 26.3188 (2025/4), Lat. 41.7171, Long. 26.316 (2025/5).


18.6.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 10 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 41.7231, Long. 26.3188 (2025/4), Lat. 41.7171, Long. 26.316 (2025/5), excluding the areas contained in the protection zone.


27.6.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 3 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 41.7231, Long. 26.3188 (2025/4), Lat. 41.7171, Long. 26.316 (2025/5).


19.6.2025 - 27.6.2025





Region of Haskovo

BG-CAPRIPOX-2025-00006


Protection zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 3 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.1161, Long. 26.182 (2025/6).


18.6.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 10 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.1161, Long. 26.182 (2025/6), excluding the areas contained in the protection zone.


27.6.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Haskovo, contained within a circle of a radius of 3 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.1161, Long. 26.182 (2025/6).


19.6.2025 -27.6.2025





Region of Burgas

BG-CAPRIPOX-2025-00007


Protection zone:
Those parts of the region of Burgas, contained within a circle of a radius of 5 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.3872, Long. 27.2608 (2025/7).


14.7.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Burgas, contained within a circle of a radius of 15 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.3872, Long. 27.2608 (2025/7), excluding the areas contained in the protection zone.


29.7.2025




Surveillance zone:
Those parts of the region of Burgas, contained within a circle of a radius of 5 kilometres, centred on UTM 30, ETRS89 coordinates Lat. 42.3872, Long. 27.2608 (2025/7).


15.7.2025 -29.7.2025







ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2025/1261/oj
ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)