Determination of the ratio of forest to agricultural land
Article 48
1. Member States deciding to implement Article 46(7) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 shall establish the percentage of forests compared to the total land surface area referred to in the first subparagraph of that paragraph on the basis of the data available from Eurostat. Forest data shall refer to the definition as applied by the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations and shall exclude the area under other wooded land. The total land surface area shall exclude the area under inland water including rivers and lakes. 2. The ratio of forest to agricultural land referred to in Article 46(7) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 shall be calculated using data available from Eurostat. If there are no data available from Eurostat on the land under forest and agricultural land at the required scale to assess the forest ratio on an area level equivalent to the LAU2 level or on the level of a clearly delineated unit which covers a single clear contiguous geographical area having similar agricultural conditions, other data sources may be used. Member States shall demonstrate that they have used up to date and consistent data on land under forest and agricultural land reflecting to the extent possible the actual situation. 3. The data and calculations referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be valid for three years. After the expiry of this period, Member States deciding to further apply the exemption provided for in Article 46(7) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 and renew that three-year period shall recalculate the ratios in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article using the newest data available. In case of changes in the administrative boundaries affecting the ratio mentioned in paragraph 2, the data and calculations shall be reassessed and any changes in the application of the exemption notified to the Commission.