Annexe 27 - Etude nationale Pologne

Comm/Agri

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• Publié par: Indou
• Nombre de lectures: 22
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                EVALUATION DES MESURES AGRO-ENVIRONNEMENTALES     AGRI/ G4/ 2004             A NNEXE 27   :   E TUDE NATIONALE P OLOGNE    

Novembre 2005       SIA Estonian, Latvian & Lithuanian Environment, Skolas street 10-8, Riga, LV 1010, Latvia

Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

T ABLE OF CONTENTS  

  1.   S TATE OF THE AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL ENVIRONMENT IN THE COUNTRY 1   1.1   Brief description of the agriculture in the country.......................................................................... 1   1.2   Brief description of the environment in agriculture ....................................................................... 3   1.3   Brief presentation of the AE system in the country ........................................................................ 5   1.3.1   Description of the historic of implementation of AEM ................................................................... 5   1.3.2   Description of the portfolio of AEM in the country (main objectives of the AEM, possible zoning of intervention, etc.) ...................................................................................................................................... 5   1.3.3   List of the AEM ............................................................................................................................... 6   1.3.4   Organisation of the implementation at national and regional level ................................................. 7   1.3.5   Level of development of the good agricultural practice documentation.......................................... 8   1.4   The level of implementation of the measures................................................................................... 9   2.   A NSWER TO EVALUATION QUESTIONS ............................................................. 12   2.1   Preamble ........................................................................................................................................... 12   2.2   Interpretation of the questions for NMS and list of questions to be asked in the NMS to answer the evaluation questions................................................................................................................................ 12   2.2.1   Q 9 : To what extent can the existing or planned institutional structures and working methods in the new Member States facilitate or hinder the construction of programmes and good quality agri- environmental measures ? .......................................................................................................................... 12   2.2.2   Q 10: to what extent is funding of the programme adequate as regards the EU contribution, Member State budget, regional budget? ..................................................................................................... 15   2.2.3   Q 11: To what extent are the monitoring, evaluation and supervision of the agro-environmental measures in place in the Member States fit for the purpose? ...................................................................... 15   2.2.4   Q 12: To what extent have the degree of application been influenced (or should be influenced) by other implementation factors or other relevant factors (such as the attitude towards the agro-environment, knowledge of the agro-environment at all levels within the Member State, the extent of GAPs, other CAP /EU measures, 5-year minimum contracts, limitation of beneficiaries to farmers only etc.) ............. 17   3.   C ONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................... 19   A PPENDICES .......................................................................................................... 20   Annex 1: List of people met .......................................................................................................................... 20   Annex 2: Main bibliography identified in relation with the study including reports made prior to the EU membership ............................................................................................................................................. 20      

 

Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

T ABLE OF TABLES     Table 1. Structure of land use in thousand hectares ...................................................................................... 1 Table 2. Area, production and yields in 1996-2003 ...................................................................................... 1 Table 3. Production of major animal products in 1990 – 2003 ................................................................... . 2 Table 4. Results of foreign trade in agri-food products in 2000 – 2003 (million USD) ............................... 2 Table 5. Consumption of mineral or chemical and lime fertilizers in farming (in terms of pure ingredient), thousand tons................................................................................................................................... 3 Table 6. Consumption of mineral or chemical and lime fertilizers in farming (in terms of pure ingredient), per 1 ha of Agricultural land in kg .................................................................................................. 4 Table 7. Supply and consumption of pesticides in tonnes of commodity mass ............................................ 4 Table 8. Agri-environmental packages with their implementation area........................................................ 6 Table 9. Control of agri-environmental programmes .................................................................................... 8 Table 10. Number of signed contracts by agri-environmental packages (S01,P01,P02,K01,K02,G01) per province during the period 01/09/2004 – 20/05/2005 ................................................................... 10 Table 11. Area (ha) and number of animals by agri-environmental packages (S01,P01,P02,K01,K02,G01) per province until 20/05/2005 ....................................................................................................... 10 Table 12. Signed contracts during the period 01/09/2004 – 01/06/2005 amount of quotas and territory for agri-environmental package S 02 “organic farming” .................................................................... 11 Table 13. Allocation of funding, in EUR million.......................................................................................... 15   G LOSSARY   AE Agri-environment AEM Agri-environmental measures ARMA Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture CGAP Code of Good Agricultural Practice EC European Community EU European Union GAPC Good Agriculture Practice Code GFP Good Farming Practice HELCOM The Helsinki Commision, the governing body of the "Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area" MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development NATURA2000 Coherent European Network of Protected Areas NMS New Member States NUTS Nomenclature des Unites Territorial Statistique RDP The Rural Development Plan SAPARD Special Accession Programme for Agriculture & Rural Development SAPARD Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development UGFP Usual Good Farming Practice

 

Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

1.  STATE OF THE AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL ENVIRONMENT IN THE COUNTRY

1.1  Brief description of the agriculture in the country The total territory of Poland is 312685 square kilometres and the population is 38.23 million inhabitants. Rural areas in Poland are 93.4 % of the territory. It has to be noted that in Poland, areas situated outside town administrative boundaries are considered as rural areas, differently than in EU old member states, where population density is the distinguishing factor. Agricultural land constitutes 11.4 % of the area of the country (meadows – 8.1%, pastures – 3.3%), which amounts to 21.1% of the area occupied by agricultural lands. Table 1.   Structure of land use in thousand hectares  Agricultural land Total Arable land Orchards Meadows Pastures 1995 17934 13886 278 2272 1498 2000 17812 13683 257 2503 1369   2001 17787 13666 258 2492 1371 2002 16899 13067 271 2531 1030 2003 16169 12650 250 2341 928 2004 16327 12684 277 2390 975 Source : Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2004.   Main categories of production are: Plant production -   Fruits and vegetables In 2002 over 3.0 million tons of fruit and about 3.9 million tons of vegetables were harvested. In year 2000 about 60% (2 M tones) of fruit and about 11% (830 000 tones) of total vegetable production was processed.   -   Cereal products Cereal production takes place primarily in the northern, north-eastern and north-western regions of Poland. Table 2.   Area, production and yields in 1996-2003 Type of crops 1996 - 2000 2000 2003 Total cereals area (ths. ha) 8796,0 8814,0 8163,3 yields (dt per ha) 28,6 25,3 28,7 production (ths. tonnes) 25189,4 22340,6 23390,8 Potato area (ths. ha) 1292 1251 765,8 yields (dt per ha) 183,0 194,0 179 production (ths. tonnes) 23620,0 24232,3 13731,5 Sugar beets area (ths. ha) 395,4 333,1 286,3 yields (dt per ha) 377,0 394,0 410 production (ths. tonnes) 14920,1 13134,4 11739,5 Field area (ths. ha) 243,6  171,3 ∗  198,4 vegetables production  (ths. tonnes) 5345,7  3947,2 ∗  4419,5 Total tree fruit production (ths. tonnes) 1837,1  2603,5 ∗  2875,5 Source: Agriculture and food economy in Poland – figures, 2004.                                                             ∗ year 2002

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

Animal production -   Milk production and processing in Poland In 2003 milk production in Poland amounted to 11,450 billion litres of which 8,589 billion litres were produced for the market. The average milk yield in 2002 was 3902 kg per cow and in 2003 – 3940 kg per cow. It is estimated that in 2003 total milk production was around 11,460 million litres and in 2004 around 11,840 million litres.   -   Meat production and processing in Poland In 2002 pig and cattle production amounted to 2,601,000 tons and 523,000 tons, respectively. Almost 900,000 farms in Poland keep cattle however, only 67% of them produce for the market, in the case of pigs, over 75% of farms produce for the market. The production and processing of red meat is one of the largest sectors of the national economy. Table 3.   Production of major animal products in 1990 – 2003 Type of production Unit 1990 2000 2003 Total slaughter animals by ths. tons live weight, including: 4493 4112 4776 Pigs ths. tons 2341 2501 2833 Cattle ths. tons 1428 635 591 Calves ths. tons 105 83 76 Poultry ths. tons 474 834 1228 Horses ths. tons 37 45 30 Sheep ths. tons 96 7 6 Milk Million l 15371 11543 11546 Eggs Million units 7597 7621 9168 Wool Tons 14783 132 1218 Source: Agriculture and food economy in Poland – figures, 2004.   Organic farming The introduction of financial support for organic farms in 1999 created the conditions for their rapid growth. In 1998 there were 417 organic farms in Poland involved to the audit system, in 1999 – 555 with total area of about 11,000 ha, and in2002 the number of farms exceeded 2000 and their land area reached 44,000 ha. Organic farming is an important factor in increasing of employment in rural areas because it creates new jobs and constitutes an additional source of income for farmers.   Processing of agricultural products The food industry is one of the most important sectors of the Polish economy in terms of the volume of production sold (over 20% of the total sales value of the Polish industry), the number of plants (about 30,000) and employment (411,000 people). Its share in the total industrial production is almost 24%.   -   Foreign trade in Agri-food products. The results of foreign trade in agri-food products are presented in table 4. In 2003 for the first time in 10 years a positive balance of foreign trade was registered. Table 4.   Results of foreign trade in agri-food products in 2000 – 2003 (million USD)  2000 2001 2002 2003 Export 2650 3030 3285 4519 Import 3183 3406 3576 4013 Balance -533 -376 -291 506 Source: Agriculture and food economy in Poland – figures, 2004.        

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

Responsible institutions for the organisation of agriculture in the country are: -   Governmental institutions: •   Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the Managing Authority for the implementation of AEM, •   Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture (ARMA) is the Paying Agency and is in chrge of the implementation of the RPD – subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture, which is responsible for the uniform implementation of the state support and the EU support policy in the whole country. The ARMA has 16 regional offices and 315 Poviat offices. •   Agricultural Market Agency – the main taskof Agency is to stabilise commodity markets through state intervention, as well as protection of agricultural producers income level. •   Agricultural Property Agency of the State Treasury – the responsibility of agency is restructuring and privatisation of the State’s agricultural real estate. It’s exercises property rights over all the liquidated state agricultural enterprises and agricultural property transferred from the State Land Fund, as well as in compliance with regulations on farmers’ social insurance, it purchases agricultural property from retiring farmers. -   Non-governmental institutions: •   WWF Poland is currently running ten projects in Poland. They deal with the protection of rivers, forests and the climate, as well as promoting sustainable development alongside traditional and environmentally-friendly agriculture. •   Cooperation Fund, Bureau for Rural Programmes From - the aim of the Foundation is to stimulate and assist the democratic transformation of the Polish economy through support to the activities of the foreign aid coordinator, and in particular through receiving and utilization of various forms of aid (financial and in-kind) obtained by Poland from the European Union and other multilateral institutions, as well as foreign governmental and private donors. •   National Council of Agricultural Chambers is representing the polish agriculture chambers - a common polish farmer's self-government. Every polish farmer is a member of the agriculture chambers. The authorities and officers of the agriculture chambers are representing the farmer's opinions, and they co-operate with government authorities. 1.2   Brief description of the environment in agriculture In general, Polish agriculture has preserved its traditional character. The majority of farms have mixed production pattern and apply extensive methods of cultivation. In 1998 the productivity in the agricultural sector was less than 25% of the average productivity in the national economy. The use of mineral fertilizers in 2001 amounted to 90,8 kg of NPK/ha (table 6). The use of pesticides in Poland is several times lower than the EU average – 0,62 kg/ha of farmland. Due to low productivity the impact of agriculture on the environment and landscape has been limited. The natural qualities of rural areas and abundant labour consuming types of farm production, including organic farming, which is less developed in Poland than in Western European countries.   Use of mineral fertilizers, lime fertilizers and supply and consumption of pesticides in agriculture over the past years is presented in tables 5-7 below. Table 5.   Consumption of mineral or chemical and lime fertilizers in farming (in terms of pure ingredient), thousand tons Specification 1995/96 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 Mineral or chemical 1511,3 1615,1 1574,2 1511,7 1622,1 fertilizers   N 852,0 895,5 861,8 831,7 895,0 P 2 O 5  301,7 317,9 319,9 302,6 321,9 K 2 O 357,6 401,7 392,5 377,4 405,2 Lime fertilizers 2224,8 1675,1 1589,8 1529,5 1525,9 Source : Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2004.

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

18756 1470 4633

12113

80 460

Table 6.  Consumption of mineral or chemical and lime fertilizers in farming (in terms of pure ingredient), per 1 ha of Agricultural land in kg Specification 1995/96 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 Mineral or chemical 84,5 90,8 93,2 93,6 99,3 fertilizers   N 47,6 50,3 51,0 51,5 54,8 P 2 O 5  16,9 17,9 18,9 18,7 19,7 K 2 O 20,0 22,6 23,3 23,4 24,8 Lime fertilizers 124,4 94,2 94,1 94,6 93,5 Source : Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2004. Table 7.   Supply and consumption of pesticides in tonnes of commodity mass Pesticides 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 (crop protection chemicals) TOTAL 19687 22164 22213 26578  Insectitides 1154 2533 1976 1439 Fungicides 3350 4686 5285 7525 and seed dressings Herbicides 13476 13233 14662 17266 and hormones Rodent 139 53 33 109 poisons Others 1568 1659 257 239 Source : Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2004.   Soil conditions Natural and soil conditions in Poland are worse than average EU soil conditions. This is the result of the influence of subsequent glaciations on the soil forming process, which led to the major part of the country being covered with light soils on sandy, permeable ground. The typical feature of Polish production space is the mosaic layout of soil types – soils with good quality and high agricultural suitability are situated adjacent to low-quality soils. Soils in Poland are characterized by extensive acidification, acid and highly acid soils constitute about 45% of agriculture lands. The recent reduction of utilization of calcium fertilizers (table 5) has reduced the effectiveness of counteraction against soil acidification.   Water resources Water resources in Poland are not evenly distributed. The central part of the country is affected by a water deficit, while the mountain regions in the south often receive intensive rainfall.   Water may become a limiting factor with regard to size of agricultural production. Disturbing the water balance of agricultural areas leads to a permanent reduction in the productive potential of agriculture lands. The insufficient water resources within the entire Polish lowland as well as the uneven distribution of rainfall can be partially balanced by an increase in available water resources. Farming is a dominating form of land use in Poland. Species and resource abundance of the rural areas in Poland is much larger than in the EU Member States of the same climatic zone. Approximately 30 per cent of farmland in Poland has unique natural values (sanctuaries of threatened floral and animal species). There are species-rich unimproved permanent grasslands such as xerothermic grasslands, mountain meadows, lowland and mountain pastures, wet grasslands. Wildlife refuges can be found also on the land, which is not used for farming purpose, as woodlands, peatbog, balks, water reservoirs, etc.      

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

The factors facilitating species and habitat diversity of the farming regions in Poland include: -   location of Poland on the border of the Atlantic Ocean climate and continental climate and specific surface features. It is due to its location that Poland can boast of species which cannot be found in any other places; -   preservation of systems of lowland rivers with natural habitats and seasonally flooded areas; -   rich mosaic of habitats resulting from fragmented structure of farms and extensive farming; -   well-developed system of nature protection covering 32,5 per cent of the total area of the country.   Main threats to the agri-biodiversity are due to: -   neglecting or abandoning of meadows and pastures which are becoming woodland; -   intensification of grassland farming (premature scheduling of hay-making and grazing, increase of livestock density); -   permanent transformation of the habitats due to the lowering of the ground water level, elimination of spring floods, nitrogen fertilisation; -   changes of the arable land structure, increase of fields size usually accompanied by damage of ecological sites and introduction of mono-cultures farming over large areas; -   burning of dry grass cover. 1.3   Brief presentation of the AE system in the country

1.3.1  Description of the historic of implementation of AEM The history of the first agri-environmental program has started in 1997 with the project “A case study in the Green Lungs Area of Poland”. On the basis of biodiversity and farming methods assessment, different farm management packages were proposed to farmers, economic analyse was made and control measures were tested. Later on, the agri-environmental measures were presented in the National Plan for Accession (2000) and Poland’s negotiations positions (2000) as a middle term priority. The payments for agri-environmental services were planned in ‘Coherent Structural Policy for Rural Areas and Agriculture Development”. It was planned to implement pilot projects on agri-environmental schemes in selected areas with high natural values. In 2002 the funds for financing of training in agri-environmental development were reallocated to the projects aimed at the intensification of agricultural production. It was decided that preparing to the implementation of National Agri-environmental Programme for 2004-2006 would be more effective than implementation of small pilot programmes.   Environmental organisations were opposed to this decision and as a result of this situation in December 2002 agri-environmental schemes were reincorporated into SAPARD Programme. 1.3.2   Description of the portfolio of AEM in the country (main objectives of the AEM, possible zoning of intervention, etc.) The main objectives of AEM according to the RDP of Poland are: -   Promotion of good farming practices conducted in accordance with the requirements of environmental protection (counteracting water contamination, soil erosion) protection and shaping of landscape, protection of the species of wild fauna and flora, endangered with the extinction and of their habitats; -   Protection of genetic resources of farm animals; - Increase of ecological awareness among rural communities.     The agri-environmental packages (Table 8) of the NAP shall be implemented in a horizontal manner as well as in 69 geographically delimited priority zones of a total area of 9,950,155 ha what constitutes 32% of the total country’s area. 5

Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

  A priority zone is an area for the implementation of the Agri-environmental Programme that exhibits specific environmental problems and requires the implementation of remedial or protective measures. The objective of distinguishing priority zones is the concentration of agri-environmental measures and the achievement of measurable environmental impact. The detailed criteria for the selection of priority zones were as follows: -   High status in the national and international system of protected areas – National park or landscape park status, projected refuges within the Natura 2000. -   Threats to agricultural production space posed by water or wind erosion, water pollution or the presence of fallow land. -   Pointing to regional differences in mountain and lowland areas where traditional types of agricultural landscapes prevail, differing with respect to farm size and farmland layout. -   Counteracting tendencies leading to the specialization and intensification of agricultural production. -   Threats to the simplification of the rich landscape mosaic forming part of the traditional landscape structure and the basis for the development of the region.

Table 8.  Agri-environmental packages with their implementation area Code Name of the agri-environmental package Area planned in Area of implementation thousands ha S01 Sustainable farming 210 Priority zones S02 Organic farming 200 Entire country P01 Maintenance of extensive meadows 220 Priority zones P02 Maintenance of extensive pastures K01 Soil and water protection 570 Entire country K01 Buffer zones  Number of female heads G01 Protection of local breeds of farm animals 24 690 Entire country 1.3.3   List of the AEM The scope of measure: support for agri-environment and animal welfare (National Agri- environmental Programme) in Rural development plan for Poland assumes strengthening of patterns of stable and sustainable farming system, especially on the protected areas and those endangered with the degradation. The National Agri-environmental Programme covers 7 agri-environmental undertakings, being called the agri-environmental packages. Following packages have been foreseen within the NAP: -   “sustainable farming”, based on fertilizers’ input reduction, balancing of fertilizers’ management and utilization and keeping a proper crop rotation; -   “organic farming”, based on utilization of organic farming methods in the meaning of the Council Regulations (EC) 2092/91 and 1804/99, Act on organic farming; -   “maintenance of extensive meadows”, related to re-introduction or continuation of grass- cutting, starting from the 1 st July, on single-swath meadows of high natural values, endangered with degradation; -   “maintenance of extensive pastures”, assuming recovery or preservation of extensive grazing on semi-natural pastures in the manner, guaranteeing conservation of floristic values and the habitats of the species, endangered with extinction; -   “water and soil protection”, based on intercrops’implementation, in order to increase the share of soils covered by plants during the autumn – winter period;

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

- “buffer zones”, consisting in creation of new 2-metre or 5 metre sodden belts on the border of agricultural land with surface water reservoirs, with agriculturally intensively utilised areas, with the aim to reduce a negative effect and to protect the sensitive habitats; -   “protection of local breeds of farm animals”, consisting in maintenance of local breed farm animal herds (horses, cattle and sheep), that are endangered with extinction.

1.3.4  Organisation of the implementation at national and regional level

Planning - Programming A farmer according to the detailed agri–environmental plan, will implement agri-environmental packages. A farmer may obtain payments for implementation of 1 to 3 packages in parallel. In case of introduction more than one package, the strictly defined principles for combining of packages shall be applicable. The packages: sustainable farming and organic farming or packages; organic farming and soil and water protection cannot be implemented in combination at the farm level due to the principle of introducing these packages or avoiding the overlapping of the same paid practices. On the other hand, farmers dealing with organic farming within the Priority Zones may implement, additionally, the package: maintenance of extensive meadows, maintenance of extensive pastures, buffer zones and the package: protection of local breeds of farm animals. The elaboration of agri-environmental application and a detailed agri-environmental plan would require a participation of agricultural adviser, being appropriately trained in the agri-environmental issues. Implementation and control A farmer, who wants to participate in the programme, must submit the application for accession to the agri-environmental programme, together with the application for payment and with the respective supporting documents. Preparation of the application has to be done with the participation of the agri-environment advisor. The application then is received by the competent Poviat Office o ARMA throughout the whole year and considered twice a year (15 th of January and 15 th of June). The required documents, supporting the application are as follows: -   Topographical document, presenting the borders of the farm, covered with the agri- environmental packages (obligatory); -   Certificate on the compliance with the protection plan (if it exists) for the protected area of NATURA 2000 network in case of introducing the packages P01 and P02, being issued by the management of national parks and landscape parks or by NATURA 2000, in case of an absence of the protection plan – certificate proving harmless or positive impact on protected species or/and habitats, issued by Boards of National Parks and Landscape parks or NATURA 2000 network areas; -   Certificate or entry of the animal in the breeding herd book and document on participation in programme of genetic resources protection in case of introducing package G01, issued by the national breeders’ associations; -   The additional documents, being checked during the inspection on the spot, which are to be possessed by the beneficiary, are as follows: •   Detailed agri-environmental plan, approved by agri-environmental adviser; •   Certificate of compliance with the organic farming requirements or declaration about being formally in the period of conversion into organic farming (S02); •   Register of activities, conducted in the farm with current notes.   The selection of the applications shall be effectuated after formal and technical verification on the principles of sequence of submitting the applications (according to the date of submitting the complete application).  

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Evaluation of agri-environmental measures - Poland

Table 9.  Control of agri-environmental programmes Level of control on the spot 5% Institution responsible for control on the spot ARMA Delegated control function Agriculture and Food Quality Inspection – organic farming (S02) Institutions cooperating within the frames of control Institute of environmental Protection of UGFP Inspection of Plant Protection and Seed Material Period of performing control March - October Source: Rural development plan for Poland, 2004 – 2006. Monitoring The monitoring is carried out in accordance with the established procedures and based on the physical, financial, and result indicators defined therefore. Such indicators shall reflect the specifics of the assistance granted, its goals, the social and economic conditions, and the structural and environmental conditions, which shall be the subject of the evaluation at the national and regional level.   According to the RDP for Poland the monitoring procedure is as followings: information is gathered by the Paying Agency (ARMA) based on the documents submitted by the beneficiaries. Data gathered shall be transmitted to the Managing Authority (MARD). The data compiled shall form an integral part of report on progress towards the objectives of plan. The comprehensive database has been developed by the Paying Agency to gather data regarding: Application for assistance submitted under the Plan; -   Applications refused; -   Beneficiaries; -   Values of the monitoring indicators reflecting the progress achieved in the implementation of the different measures under the Plan -   Expenditure incurred; -   Payment verifications carried out and the payment authorisations given; -   Control of findings and the sanctions imposed in relation thereto.   Basic indicators have been defined for agri-environmental measures, the full list of indicators is presented in the RDP, annex P. 1.3.5   Level of development of the good agricultural practice documentation Environment protection in Poland is regulated by many international agreements, which Poland has signed, as well as by the EU regulations that oblige all countries to prepare a Code of Good Agricultural Practice. A Code of Good Agricultural Practice (CGAP) in Poland consists of four main parts: environmental protection and farm management, soil protection, water protection and air protection.   The Code of Good Agricultural Practice has been prepared in co-operation with agricultural advisers and representatives of Agricultural Organizations. It is supposed to be useful in introducing environmentally-friendly practices into the agriculture and in enabling the agricultural sector to develop in a sustainable way. The Code describes not only the main environmental threats likely to arise during agricultural production which may lead to unfavourable changes of physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil and water, but it is also a guide showing how to protect the environment in agricultural production.   The Usual Good Farming Practice (UGFP) is part of the Polish CGAP. UGFP is defined as the agri-environmental minimum for measures under the Regulations 1257/1999 and is based on legislative provisions applicable to agricultural holdings.  

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