Dr Steve Moncaster,
from the Broadland Agricultural Water Abstractors Group, (BAWAG,) is a guest
speaker at the Norfolk Farming Conference being held on 30th November at the
Norfolk Showground. Lovewell Blake is one of the event sponsors and co-organisers.
The access to water
that farmers and food producers rely on is changing – and abstractors need to
put the issue at the top of their agendas before it’s too late.
That was the message
from Dr Moncaster, Membership & Technical Advisor at BAWAG.
“Farming and food
businesses won’t have the security of supply they previously had – so they need
to start looking at the issue now,” said Dr Moncaster.
BAWAG’s vision is for
agri-food abstractors to have access to reliable, affordable and sustainable
supplies of water.
To ensure a ‘fair share
of water’, BAWAG is working on agri-food water resource management plans which
are being put in place to help the industry get to grips with the changes that
are coming.
It comes after a recent
Judicial Review, which resulted in a judge directing the Environment Agency to
devise a plan to look at abstraction licences across the Broads – not just in
the area originally at the centre of the issue.
The ruling has serious
implications for farmers and comes amid significant changes to the licensing
system.
Set up in the early
1960s, this originally prioritised abstractors over the needs of the
environment, including through the granting of ‘permanent’ licences. This is
changing and the new permits that are being brought in will be subject to
periodic review, mainly to protect water dependent habitats and species.
BAWAG aims to help its
members and others in Norfolk who have licences to abstract water either for
irrigation or for use in their factories/businesses.
Dr
Moncaster said: “The Ant Broads and Marshes restoring sustainable abstraction programme
and previous work in the area has driven a lot of technical and legal
developments in relation to abstraction management.
“We
are starting to understand what the impact on businesses could be – and there
are potentially massive risks.”
BAWAG aims to build
capacity within its membership to deal with water management and planning
issues during the transition into the new regulatory regime. This includes
setting up farm clusters and groups which it can support.
“The technical water
resource planning and management expertise that exists within water companies
and the Environment Agency doesn’t really exist in our sector, even though the
issues we face are every bit as serious as those that the water companies are
facing.
“So, there is a gap. We
want farmers to contact us so we can start working with them and their
neighbours and help everybody get on the front foot of this issue.”
You can hear Dr
Moncaster speak at the Norfolk Farming Conference.
Book your tickets here.
