Official European Regulations During Bluetongue Outbreaks
According to European law Bluetongue is a notifiable disease. Emergency measures for Bluetongue control during an outbreak follow the EC procedures. Protection and surveillance zones are established.
Additional measures may be undertaken by different countries including a census of susceptible animals, housing of ruminants from dusk to dawn and insecticide treatment of animals and buildings. The goverment may declare a midge free period during the winter when temperatures are below 10°C for 14 days and if at 5 farms in a given region less than 10 Culicoides are caught during one night.
Restriction zones established by the Member States
Council Directive 2000/75/EC contains control rules and measures to combat Bluetongue in the Community. Rules include the establishment of protection and surveillance zones and a ban on animals of susceptible species leaving those zones. Exemptions may de given by the Commission in accordance with the procedure provided for in that Directive. The demarcation of protection and surveillance zones must take into account geographical, administrative, ecological and epizootiological factors connected with Bluetongue and control arrangements. In order to take account of those factors, it was deemed necessary to lay down rules as regards the minimum harmonised requirements for monitoring and surveillance of Bluetongue in the Community.
To address these issues Comission Regulation of 26 October 2007 on implementing rules for Council Directive 2000/75/EC as regards the control, monitoring, surveillance and restrictions on movements was adopted.
According to Article 6.4 of the above Regulation, Member States shall draw up and keep updated a list of the restricted zones in their territory and make it available to the other Member States and to the public and article 6. 5 establishes that the Commission shall publish, for information purposes only, on its website the updated list of restricted zones.