COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark will erect a 70-kilometer (43.4-mile) fence along the German border to stop wild boars from crossing, in the hope of preventing the spread of African swine fever, which can jeopardize the country's big pork industry.

Denmark's Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday it had approved the outline for the fence, which will be up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall. Construction would start next year.

In June, lawmakers approved the fence, among other measures, to stop African swine fever, which has been reported in the European Union, chiefly in the Baltics, Poland and Romania.

Environment minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen at the time said Denmark's pork exports to non-EU countries — worth 11 billion kroner ($ 1.6 billion) annually — would be affected.

Unlike swine flu, African swine fever doesn't affect humans.