Commission Implementing Decision of 3 November 2011 on granting a derogation requested by Italy with regard to the Regions of Emilia Romagna, Lombardia, Piemonte and Veneto pursuant to Council Directive 91/676/EEC concerning the protection of waters against pollution caused by nitrates from agricultural sources (notified under document C(2011) 7770) (Only the Italian text is authentic) (2011/721/EU)

Article 6 Application of manure and other fertilisers

1. The amount of cattle manure, including by the animals themselves, and treated manure applied to the land each year on farms benefiting from a derogation shall not exceed the amount of manure containing 250 kg nitrogen per hectare, subject to the conditions laid down in paragraphs 2 to 12.

2. The total nitrogen inputs shall not exceed the foreseeable nutrient demand of the considered crop. It shall take into account the supply from the soil and the increased manure nitrogen availability due to manure treatment. It shall not exceed maximum application standards, as established in the action programmes applicable to the farm.

3. The total phosphorus inputs shall not exceed the foreseeable nutrient demand of the considered crop and take into account the phosphorus supply from the soil. Phosphorus in chemical fertilisers shall not be applied in derogated farms.

4. A fertilisation plan describing the crop rotation of the farmland and the planned application of manure and mineral fertilisers shall be prepared for each farm by 15 February at the latest.

The fertilisation plan shall include the following:

(a) the number of livestock, a description of the housing and storage system, including the volume and type of manure storage available;

(b) a calculation of manure nitrogen and phosphorus produced in the farm;

(c) the description of manure treatment and characteristics of treated manure (if relevant);

(d) the amount, type and characteristics of manure delivered outside the farm or in the farm;

(e) the crop rotation and acreage of parcels with crops with high nitrogen demand and long growing season and parcels with other crops;

(f) the expected yields for each cultivated crop, depending on nutrient and water availability, as well as local conditions, such as climate, soil type, etc.;

(g) the estimated nitrogen and phosphorus crop requirements for each parcel;

(h) a calculation of manure nitrogen and phosphorus to be applied over each parcel;

(i) a calculation of nitrogen from chemical fertilisers to be applied over each parcel;

(j) the estimation of the amount of water needed for irrigation and the precise indication of water source; the authorisation for water abstraction or the contract for water use with the relevant ‘water consortium’ or the map indicating that the farm is located in areas where the shallow groundwater is in contact with the root zone shall be included in the plan.

Plans shall be revised no later than 7 days following any changes in agricultural practices to ensure consistency between plans and actual agricultural practices.

5. Fertilisation accounts shall be prepared by each farm on a parcel basis. They shall include applied amounts and time of application of manure and chemical fertilisers.

6. The authorisation for water abstraction or the contract for water use with the relevant ‘water consortium’ or the map indicating that the farm is located in areas where the shallow groundwater is in contact with the root zone shall be available at the farm. The amount of authorised or contracted amount of water, where applicable, shall be sufficient to reach crops yields obtained in conditions without water constraints.

7. Results of nitrogen and phosphorus analysis in soil shall be available for each farm benefiting from a derogation. Sampling and analysis shall be carried out before the 1^st June at least once every 4 years for phosphorus and for nitrogen for each homogeneous area of the farm, with regard to crop rotation and soil characteristics. At least one analysis per 5 hectares of farmland shall be required.

8. Livestock manure applied on derogation farms shall have a nitrogen use efficiency at least of 65 % for slurry and 50 % for solid manure.

9. Livestock manure and chemical fertilisers applied on derogation farms cannot be spread after 1 November.

10. At least two thirds of the amount of nitrogen from manure, excluding nitrogen from manure from grazing livestock, shall be applied before 30 June each year. For this purpose, farms benefiting from a derogation shall dispose of adequate storage capacity for livestock manure, which can cover at least periods during which manure application is not allowed.

11. Liquid manure, including treated manure and slurries, shall be applied through low emissions application techniques. Solid manure shall be incorporated within 24 hours.

12. In order to protect soils from risk of salinisation, treated manure with nitrogen removal shall be allowed only on non-saline and low-salinity soils. For that purpose, farmers intending to apply treated manure with nitrogen removal shall measure electrical conductivity on parcels to be used for application at least every 4 years and shall include results in the application referred to in Article 4(1). The competent authorities shall establish a protocol to be used by farmers to measure electrical conductivity. The competent authorities shall establish maps showing areas at risk of salinisation.