Continuing to make progress in protecting water – Farmers Guardian
Water quality has improved over recent years, but it is still a major issue for water companies, legislative bodies and land managers ...
With co-operation better than legislation, there are plenty of initiatives in place which farmers can tap into.
Agriculture has made big improvements in protecting water quality in recent years, but farmers must not get complacent and should use the support available to continue the good work.
That was the message to more than 70 farmers attending a recent ‘Agriculture and Water’ workshop on the banks of the River Stour in Sudbury, Suffolk, jointly organised by agronomy firm Farmacy and Essex and Suffolk Water.
Now in its 14th year, the work-shop was originally set up to address pesticides in watercourses, but as the situation has improved through better farming practices, tighter legislation and the withdrawal of some active ingredients, it is now focusing more on fertilisers and soil, said Farmacy agronomist and event organiser Jim Woodward.
Water quality in the region has been improving in recent years, with reductions in both the number and quantity of pesticides detected in watercourses.
Gary Hodgetts, of Anglian Water, said: “Awareness of raw water quality has certainly improved, but as every year presents different weather patterns and challenges, it is important to keep assessing your land to water connectivity.”
Water quality had been particularly good throughout much of 2022, as the dry spring and summer meant much less water coming from agricultural land, he said.
The soil moisture deficit hit 127.7mm in the driest part of the summer, far exceeding the typical 90-95mm.
Reduced river flow and concern over supplies were big issues though, and even by the end of November, many reservoirs in the region had only recovered to 50-60 per cent of capacity, Mr Hodgetts said.
Although dry weather helped water quality earlier in 2022, Stephen Derbyshire, of Essex and Suffolk Water, highlighted how the risk of nutrients and pesticides entering watercourses soon increased in the wetter winter months, reinforcing the importance of following good practice.
Results
Results from regular water sampling along the River Stour showed clear spikes in some key actives, including clopyralid, propyzamide, glyphosate and carbetamide, at different times through the year, usually soon after heavy rainfall events during autumn through to spring.
He said the firm would also continue testing for metaldehyde for the foreseeable future, even though it was withdrawn from use on farms in March 2022, as there could be some residues in soil and water yet to come through the system.
Nitrate concentrations in water-courses were similarly linked to rain-fall events and monitoring showed clear peaks earlier this autumn, potentially exacerbated by the dry spring and summer leaving more unused residual nitrogen in soils. For example, a concentration of 78mg/litre was recorded at Langham on the River Stour on November 7 following heavy rain. This was about four times more than was seen in summer and early autumn.
Mr Derbyshire said: “Nitrate generally peaks through winter, especially when it is very wet.”
Removing pesticide residues, sediment, nutrients, algae and any other contaminants all added cost to water treatment processes, so preventing them from entering watercourses in the first place made financial and environmental sense, for water companies, farmers and wildlife, speakers said.
PROTECTING WATER STARTS WITH SOIL
Improving soil health is fundamental to protecting water quality, according to Dick Neale of Hutchinsons, who highlighted a number of reasons why that was the case.
- Run-off: Surface capping and poor infiltration is a common issue on many arable soils, resulting in water ponding and running off into watercourses, carrying sediment, nutrients and potentially chemicals with it
- Drainage: Poor drainage again increases the risk of waterlogging and surface run-off, while very free-draining soils with poor structure and water holding capacity are more prone to leaching losses during wet weather
- Organic matter: The key to building soil structure, water and nutrient retention, organic matter on many soils has been degraded by cultivations and other intensive farming practices, so a concerted effort is needed to arrest the decline
- Nutrient use efficiency: Healthy, well-structured soils facilitate better nutrient cycling, nutrient retention and stronger crop rooting and nutrient uptake, thereby reducing the risk of excess nutrients being lost through leaching or run-off
- Biology: The soil food web is central to producing healthy soils which are well structured and able to cycle nutrients effectively; it must be ‘fed’ with energy from the sun via a constant supply of sugars and exudates from growing plants
Farmers were also encouraged to take up the opportunities provided by the Sustainable Farming Incentive Soils Standards, which offer payments of £22-£40/hectare for completing certain actions targeted towards assessing soils and improving organic matter.
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