1.Member States shall ensure that the following measures are applied in the protection zone:
(a)all holdings within the zone having animals of susceptible species shall be identified;
(b)there shall be periodic visits to holdings having animals of susceptible species, a clinical examination of those animals including, if necessary, the collection of samples for laboratory examination; a record of visits and findings must be kept, with the frequency of visits being proportional to the seriousness of the epizootic on those holdings at greatest risk;
(c)the movement and transport of animals of susceptible species on public or private roads, excluding the service roads of holdings, shall be prohibited; the competent authority may, however, grant a derogation from that prohibition for the transit of animals by road or rail without unloading or stopping;
(d)animals of susceptible species must remain on the holding on which they are being kept, except to be transported under official supervision directly to a slaughterhouse located in that zone for emergency slaughter or, if that zone has no slaughterhouse under veterinary supervision, to a slaughterhouse in the surveillance zone designated by the competent authority. Such transport may be authorized by the competent authority only after the official veterinarian has carried out an examination of all the animals of susceptible species on the holding and confirmed that none of the animals is suspected of being infected. The competent authority responsible for the slaughterhouse shall be informed of the intention to send animals to it.
2.The measures applied in the protection zone shall be kept in force for at least the maximum incubation period pertaining to the disease in question after animals from the infected holding have been disposed of in accordance with Article 5 and cleaning and disinfection operations have been carried out in accordance with Article 16. However, where the disease is transmitted by an insect vector, the competent authority may fix the duration of the measures and lay down provisions for the possible introduction of sentinel animals. Member States shall forthwith inform the Commission and the other Member States, within the Standing Veterinary Committee, of the measures they have taken.
On expiry of the period referred to in the first subparagraph, the rules applied to the surveillance zone shall also apply to the protection zone.