Commission Regulation (EC) No 1974/2006 (repealed)Dangos y teitl llawn

Sub-section 2 Axis 2

Article 26

Beneficiaries of support pursuant to Article 38 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 shall not be eligible for support pursuant to Article 31 of that Regulation, as regards the implementation of Council Directives 79/409/EEC(1) and 92/43/EEC(2).

Article 27

1. For the purpose of Article 39(1) to (4) and Article 40 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, paragraphs 2 to 13 of this Article shall apply as relevant.

2. Any commitment to extensify livestock farming or manage livestock farming differently shall comply with at least the following conditions:

(a) grassland management shall continue;

(b) the whole of the grazed area per livestock unit shall be maintained, avoiding both over-grazing and under-utilisation;

(c) livestock density shall be defined taking into account all grazing livestock kept on the farm or, in the case of a commitment to limit nutrient leaching, all animals kept on the farm which are relevant to the commitment in question.

3. Commitments to limit the use of fertilisers, plant protection products or other inputs shall be accepted only if such limitations can be assessed in a way that provides reasonable assurance about compliance with those commitments.

4. Support may relate to the following commitments:

(a) to rear farm animals of local breeds indigenous to the area and in danger of being lost to farming;

(b) to preserve plant genetic resources naturally adapted to the local and regional conditions and under threat of genetic erosion.

The eligible species of farm animals and the criteria for determining the threshold of loss to farming of local breeds are defined in Annex IV.

5. Agri-environment and/or animal welfare support for the same production shall not be precluded by environmental measures implemented under common market organisations or direct support schemes listed in Annex I, animal and plant health measures or rural development measures other than agri-environment and animal welfare support, provided that such support is additional and consistent with the measures concerned.

Various agri-environment and/or animal welfare commitments may be combined provided that they are complementary and compatible.

Where measures or commitments referred to in the first and second subparagraph are combined, the level of support shall take account of the specific income foregone and additional costs resulting from the combination.

6. Agri-environment measures on land set aside under Article 54 or Article 107 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 shall qualify for support only if the agri-environment commitments go beyond the main requirements laid down in Article 3(1) of that Regulation.

In the case of support for mountain areas, areas with other handicaps, Natura 2000 agricultural areas and agricultural areas included in river basin management plans pursuant to Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(3), agri-environment commitments shall, as appropriate, take account of the conditions laid down for support in the areas concerned.

7. Any animal welfare commitment as referred to in Article 40 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 shall provide upgraded standards in at least one of the following areas:

(a) water and feed closer to their natural needs;

(b) housing conditions, such as space allowances, bedding, natural light;

(c) outdoor access;

(d) absence of systematic mutilations, isolation or permanent tethering;

(e) prevention of pathologies mainly determined by farming practices or/and keeping conditions.

8. The reference level for calculating income foregone and additional costs resulting from the commitments given shall be the relevant standards and requirements referred to in Article 39(3) and Article 40(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005.

9. Where commitments are normally expressed in units other than those used in the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, Member States may calculate payments on the basis of those other units. In such cases, the Member States shall ensure that the maximum amounts per year eligible for Community support set out in that Annex are complied with. To this end the Member State may:

(a) set a limit on the number of units per hectare of the farm to which the agri-environment commitments applies, or

(b) determine the overall maximum amount for each participating farm and ensure that the payments for each farm are compatible with that limit.

10. Member States shall determine the need to provide compensation for transaction cost as provided for in Article 39(4) and Article 40(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 on the basis of objective criteria.

For the purpose of Article 39(4) and Article 40(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, ‘transaction cost’ shall mean cost related to letting the transaction take place and not directly attributable to the implementation cost of the commitment it relates to.

The transaction cost element shall be calculated over the length of the commitment period and shall not exceed 20 % of the income foregone and additional costs due to the commitment given.

11. Member States may authorise one commitment to be converted into another during the period of its operation, provided that all the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a) any such conversion is of significant benefit to the environment or to animal welfare or to both;

(b) the existing commitment is substantially reinforced;

(c) the approved rural development programme includes the commitments concerned.

An agri-environment commitment may be converted into a commitment for first afforestation of agricultural land under Article 43 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 subject to the conditions set out in points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph. The agri-environment commitment shall cease without reimbursement being required.

12. Member States may allow agri-environment or animal welfare commitments to be adjusted during the period for which they apply, provided that the approved rural development programme includes scope for such adjustment and that the adjustment is duly justified having regard to the objectives of the commitment.

Such adjustments may also take the form of an extension of the duration of the commitment.

13. The conversion rates of animals to livestock units (LU) are set out in Annex V. Member States may differentiate those rates within the limits set in that Annex for the relevant categories, according to objective criteria.

Article 28

1. Support under Article 39(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 may cover operations carried out by other beneficiaries than those referred to in Article 39(2) of that Regulation.

2. Activities entering in agri-environmental commitments referred to in Article 27(4) of this Regulation shall not be eligible for support under Article 39(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005.

No support shall be granted under Article 39(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 for activities eligible under the framework programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities.

3. The operations for the conservation of genetic resources in agriculture eligible for support under Article 39(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 shall include the following:

(a) targeted actions: actions promoting the ex situ and in situ conservation, characterisation, collection and utilisation of genetic resources in agriculture, including web-based inventories of genetic resources currently conserved in situ, including in situ/on-farm conservation, and of ex situ collections (gene banks) and databases;

(b) concerted actions: actions promoting the exchange of information for the conservation, characterisation, collection and utilisation of genetic resources in Community agriculture, among competent organisations in the Member States;

(c) accompanying actions: information, dissemination and advisory actions involving non-governmental organisations and other relevant stakeholders, training courses and the preparation of technical reports.

4. For the purposes of this Article, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) ‘in situ conservation’ means the conservation of genetic material in ecosystems and natural habitats and the maintenance and recovery of viable population of species or feral breeds in their natural surroundings and, in the case of domesticated animal breeds or cultivated plant species, in the farmed environment where they have developed their distinctive properties;

(b) ‘in situ/on-farm conservation’ means in situ conservation and development at farm level;

(c) ‘ex situ conservation’ means the conservation of genetic material for agriculture outside their natural habitat;

(d) ‘ex situ collection’ means a collection of genetic material for agriculture maintained outside their natural habitat.

Article 29

For the purposes of Articles 41 and 49 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, ‘non-productive investments’ shall mean investments that do not lead to any significant increase in the value or profitability of the agricultural or forestry holding.

Article 30

1. For the purpose of Article 42(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, the definitions in paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article shall apply, subject to exceptions to be duly justified in the rural development programmes.

2. ‘Forest’ means land spanning more than 0,5 hectare with trees higher than 5 metres and a canopy cover of more than 10 percent, or trees able to reach those thresholds in situ. It does not include land that is predominantly under agricultural or urban land use.

Areas under reforestation that have not yet reached but are expected to reach a canopy cover of 10 percent and a tree height of 5 metres are included, as are temporarily unstocked areas, resulting from human intervention or natural causes, which are expected to regenerate.

Forests include areas with bamboo and palms provided that height and canopy cover criteria are met.

Forests include forest roads, firebreaks and other small open areas, forests in national parks, nature reserves and other protected areas, such as those of specific scientific, historical, cultural or spiritual interest.

Forests include windbreaks, shelterbelts and corridors of trees with an area of more than 0,5 hectare and width of more than 20 metres.

Forests include plantations primarily for forestry protection purposes, such as rubber-wood plantations and cork oak stands. Tree stands in agricultural production systems, such as those in fruit plantations, and agri-forestry systems are excluded from the definition of ‘forests’. Trees in urban parks and gardens are also excluded from that definition.

3. ‘Wooded areas’ means land not classified as ‘forest’, spanning more than 0,5 hectare, with trees higher than 5 metres and a canopy cover of 5-10 percent, or trees able to reach those thresholds in situ, or with a combined cover of shrubs, bushes and trees above 10 percent. The term does not include land that is predominantly under agricultural or urban use.

4. The following forests and wooded areas shall be excluded from the scope of the first sentence of Article 42(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005:

(a) forest and other wooded land owned by central or regional governments, or by government-owned corporations;

(b) forest and other wooded land owned by the Crown;

(c) forests owned by legal persons at least 50 % of whose capital is held by one of the institutions referred to in points (a) and (b).

Article 31

1. Agricultural land eligible for support for first afforestation under Article 43 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 shall be specified by the Member State and shall include land where farming takes place on a regular basis.

First afforestation in a Natura 2000 site designated pursuant to Directives 79/409/EEC and 92/43/EEC shall be consistent with the management objectives of the site concerned.

2. For the purposes of Article 43(1)(a) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, ‘establishment costs’ shall include the cost of the plantation material, the cost of the plantation and the cost directly linked to and necessary for the plantation.

3. For the purposes of Article 43(1)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, ‘farmers’ shall mean persons who devote an essential part of their working time to agricultural activities and derive from them a significant part of their income according to criteria to be determined by the Member State.

4. For the purposes of Article 43(3) and Article 44(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, ‘fast-growing species for short–term cultivation’ shall mean species with a rotation time, namely the period between two harvest cuts on the same parcel, of less than 15 years.

Article 32

For the purpose of Article 44 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 Member States, taking account of local conditions, forestry species and the need to ensure continuation of the agricultural use of the land, shall determine the maximum number of trees planted per hectare.

Article 33

1. Where support under Article 48 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 covers the creation of forest firebreaks, eligible costs may comprise, beyond the cost of establishment, subsequent maintenance cost on the area concerned.

Support for maintaining forest firebreaks through agricultural activities shall not be granted for areas benefiting from agri-environment support.

2. Preventive actions against fire, as referred to in Article 48 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, may cover the following:

(a) establishment of protective infrastructures such as forest paths, tracks, water supply points, firebreaks, cleared and felled areas, launching of operations to maintain firebreaks and cleared and felled areas;

(b) preventive forestry practices such as vegetation control, thinning, diversification of vegetation structure;

(c) setting-up or improvement of fixed forest fire monitoring facilities and communication equipment.

Article 34

1. Agricultural areas referred to in Article 50(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, which are included in river basin management plans in accordance with Directive 2000/60/EC, shall be eligible for payments pursuant to Article 38 of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005, if a relevant river basin management plan is established and implemented in those areas.

2. Environmental reasons qualifying areas as apt for afforestation as referred to in Article 50(6) of Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 may comprise prevention from erosion and/or desertification, the enhancing of biodiversity, protection of water resources, prevention of floods and climate change mitigation, provided that the latter will not harm biodiversity or cause other environmental damage.

(1)

OJ L 103, 25.4.1979, p. 1.

(2)

OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7.

(3)

OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1.