£720,000 to help farmers fight flooding

Photo: Norma Brandon

£720,000 to help farmers fight flooding

New funding for farmers and other land managers in areas hit by last winter’s floods will help them create natural flood management projects on their land, it has been confirmed today.

Up to £720,000 will be available to groups of farmers, forestry and other land management sectors in areas in the North that flooded last winter to work together on natural flood defences.

Successful applicants will be encouraged to plant trees, create water meadows and restore rivers to their natural meanders, along with other land management techniques to help slow the flow of rivers.

Farming Minister George Eustice said: “This new funding, alongside the £15m pledged for natural defences in the Autumn Statement, will help communities hit by last year’s flooding to better protect themselves against flooding and support habitats and wildlife.

“We are committed to better protecting the country from flooding and natural flood management plays an important role in our strategy – with many of the projects in our record £2.5bn on flood defence investment already using natural flood management measures.”

This funding is part of the Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund (CSFF) and the application process will be run by Natural England, working closely with the Forestry Commission and Environment Agency. Applicants should discuss their proposals with Natural England before submitting a bid.

James Cross, Chief Executive of Natural England, said: “The floods last December caused devastation in many parts of Northern England. In many cases farmers and land owners hold the key to providing natural solutions to holding back floodwater and reducing future impacts to communities at risk.

“Working collaboratively with these groups at a catchment scale will offer greater benefits and I am delighted that we worked with Defra and other partners to secure this funding.

“We want to work with applicants to bring land managers together to find measures that reduce flooding make sense for farm businesses and improve the environment.”

This fund builds on the Government’s commitment to using natural flood management techniques to better protect communities from flooding. Previous government-funded schemes have already proven successful – such as the use of ‘leaky dams’ that slow the flow of floodwater used at Pickering in Yorkshire, or better land management upstream at Holnicote in Somerset.

Flood action plans published earlier this year for Cumbria and Calderdale both emphasised the potential for using this funding to reduce flood risk in those areas by encouraging farmers and landowners to work together across a river’s entire catchment area.

The deadline to apply for funding is 15 February.