MOSCOW, December 5 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian republic of Tatarstan has banned the transport of wild boars across its borders in a bid to combat the spread of African swine fever.
The ban forbids anyone involved in the hunting industry to move wild boars in or out of Tatarstan without permission from regional and federal veterinary officials, the republic’s wildlife protection department said Wednesday.
African swine fever is a highly contagious and often fatal viral disease that affects pigs and wild boars. Humans are not affected.
Pig farms are often forced to slaughter large numbers of their livestock to prevent the spread of the disease. Dozens of outbreaks of African swine fever have been reported in a number of Russian regions this year.
Authorities believe that unauthorized the trade and transport of animals have been major contributors to the spread of the disease. The World Organization for Animal Health confirmed in July that African swine fever had also spread to neighboring Belarus.
Lithuania urged the European Union to protect livestock against potentially infected wild boars by funding construction of a “swine fence” along the borders of Russia and Belarus with the EU states of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland.
The European Commission rejected the idea in September, saying that a fence would be impracticable and would not provide effective protection against African swine fever.
