Ecological focus areas (EFAs) can help offset the impact of farming practice on the environment, an EU report has found.
The study, which covers the first two years since the introduction of EFAs in 2015 through new rules governing direct payments to farmers, found they can have positive effects on biodiversity and soil, water and climate.
Most farmers with arable land exceeding 15 ha must ensure that at least 5% of this land is an ecological focus area as part of EU rules.
In 2015, almost 8 million hectares of land were declared as EFAs, accounting for 10% of the land under the obligation after taking into account the impact on biodiversity.
The report shows the most common forms of EFA chosen by farmers are those considered ‘productive’, such as ‘nitrogen-fixing’ crops or ‘catch’ crops, where fast-growing crops grown between plantings of main crops catch nitrates, and the other is where the land lies fallow.
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