Catalan authorities have expanded the high-risk zone for African Swine Fever (ASF) to include Sant Just Desvern and Esplugues de Llobregat after a new case was detected in a wild boar outside the initial containment area.

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The discovery in Sant Just Desvern, a municipality in the Baix Llobregat comarca, marks a significant westward creep of the disease from its epicentre around Cerdanyola del Vallès. The Generalitat’s Department of Agriculture confirmed 21 new positives, bringing the total number of infected wild boars to 216 since the outbreak was officially declared in late November 2025.

Consequently, the government has immediately incorporated both Sant Just Desvern and the adjoining Esplugues de Llobregat into the restricted area. This brings the total number of municipalities under strict biosecurity controls to 18, including an enclave of Barcelona bordering the Serra de Collserola natural park.

Expanded Restrictions and Official Response

Under the new resolution, authorities now prohibit access to the natural environment in all 18 municipalities for recreational activities. This includes walking, running, cycling, and dog walking in forests and on rural paths. Picnic areas and related car parks will also be inaccessible to the public. However, officials have clarified that access to residential homes, enclosed business premises, restaurants, and sports facilities remains unaffected.

Speaking at an event in Seròs, Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, urged the public to exercise “great caution” and confirmed intensified eradication efforts. “We are continuing with the strategy of perimeter enclosure and increasing captures with all necessary means, including drones, marksmen, and traps,” Ordeig stated, as reported by Ara.

Ordeig expressed both “concern” for the potential impact on Catalonia’s vital pork sector and “determination and responsibility” to act swiftly. He stressed that while the disease is highly contagious and fatal among suids, African Swine Fever poses no risk to humans. To date, authorities have confirmed all cases in the wild boar population, with no infections detected on commercial pig farms.

Containment Efforts Intensify

Since the last update on February 26, authorities have analysed an additional 1,708 wild boars, all of which tested negative. According to La Vanguardia, the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture confirmed that these efforts include both passive surveillance of animal carcasses and active culling by trained hunters to reduce the wild boar population density.

The strategy involves a massive deployment of resources. The ministry highlighted the reinforcement of existing fences along roads and railways and the installation of specialised barriers and grates at 222 control points to prevent wild boars from leaving the infected zone while allowing vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

Despite these measures, the new case in Sant Just Desvern confirms that the virus is spreading. This development follows another recent case detected outside the initial zero zone, heightening concerns about the difficulty of containing the outbreak within the dense forests of Collserola.

“I would ask, please, to let the technicians and professionals do their work,” Ordeig pleaded, calling for a “common front and unity of action” among the livestock sector, scientists, and public administrations.

He acknowledged the challenge ahead, noting that among the 25 European countries that have registered ASF cases, Belgium eradicated the disease quickest, taking “a little more than a year to find the last positive.” This suggests a long and resource-intensive campaign lies ahead for Catalonia.