# 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 7: Land management

Extent: E+W+S+N.I.

Farmers benefiting from a derogation shall ensure that the following conditions are met:
(a) 70 % or more of the acreage of the farm shall be cultivated with crops with high nitrogen demand and long growing season;
(b) temporary grassland shall be ploughed in spring;
(c) temporary and permanent grassland shall not include more than 50 % of leguminous or other plants fixing atmospheric nitrogen;
(d) late maturing maize shall be harvested (the whole plant);
(e) winter herbage, such as Italian ryegrass, barley, triticale or winter rye, shall be seeded within 2 weeks after harvest of maize/sorghum and shall be harvested no earlier than 2 weeks before maize/sorghum sowing;
(f) summer herbage, such as maize, sorghum, Setaria or Panicum sp. shall be seeded within 2 weeks after harvest of winter cereals and shall be harvested no earlier than 2 weeks before winter cereals sowing;
(g) a crop with high nitrogen demand shall be seeded within 2 weeks after ploughing grass and fertilisers shall not be applied in the year of ploughing of permanent grassland.

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudn/2011/721/article/7 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2011-721/article-7
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.