Article 46 Ecological focus areaF1F2

Where the arable land of a holding covers more than 15 hectares, the farmer shall ensure that, from 1 January 2015, an area corresponding to at least 5 % of the arable land of the holding that the farmer declared in accordance with point (a) of the first subparagraph of Article 72(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 and, if they are considered to be ecological focus area by the F4relevant authority in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article, including the areas mentioned in points (c), (d), (g), (h), (k) and (l) of that paragraph is ecological focus area.

F5From 1 January 2027 the percentage referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph is increased from 5% to 7%.

By 31 March 2017, the Commission shall present an evaluation report on the implementation of the first subparagraph of this paragraph accompanied, where appropriate, by a proposal for a legislative act as referred to in the second subparagraph.

F6An ecological focus area may include one or more of the following:

With the exception of the areas of the holding referred to in points (g), F10(h), (k) and (l) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the ecological focus area shall be located on the arable land of the holding. In the case of areas referred to in points (c) and (d) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the ecological focus area may also be adjacent to the arable land of the holding the farmer declared in accordance with point (a) of the first subparagraph of Article 72(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013.

In order to simplify administration and to take account of the characteristics of the types of ecological focus area listed in the first subparagraph of paragraph 2, as well as to facilitate their measurement, F11the relevant authority may, when calculating the total hectares represented by the ecological focus area of the holding, make use of the conversion and/or weighting factors set out in Annex X. If F12the relevant authority decides to consider to be ecological focus area the area under point (i) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 2 or any other area that is subject to a weighting of less than 1, the use of the weighting factors set out in Annex X shall be mandatory.

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F14The relevant authority may decide to implement up to half of the percentage points of the ecological focus area referred to in paragraph 1 at regional level in order to obtain adjacent ecological focus areas. The relevant authority shall designate the areas and the obligations of participating farmers or groups of farmers. F15...

F16The relevant authority may decide to allow farmers whose holdings are in close proximity to fulfil the obligation referred to in paragraph 1 collectively ("collective implementation"), provided that the ecological focus areas concerned are contiguous. F17... The relevant authority may designate the areas on which collective implementation is possible and may impose further obligations upon farmers or groups of farmers participating in such collective implementation.

Each farmer participating in collective implementation shall ensure that at least 50 % of the area subject to the obligation in paragraph 1 is located on the land of his holding and is in accordance with the second subparagraph of paragraph 2. The number of farmers participating in such collective implementation shall not exceed ten.

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The F19appropriate authority may make regulations:

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