Over the past year farmers have had more rain than they have known what to do with it. But back in March 2012 the country had endured months of drought and many crops were just days from disaster.

Paul Hammett, NFU national water resources adviser, describes the drought as a near miss – and one that is increasingly likely to be repeated.

Like most involved in water strategy, he is in no doubt that the overriding trend is of scarcer, less predictable supply and sharply rising demand from other users. The result will be greatly increased pressure on agricultural use.

“A year ago we were facing a very serious situation,” says Mr Hammett. “We may have had a lot of rain since, but it was a real wake-up call – the UK is facing more frequent and serious drought events as climate change progresses.”

Population growth is adding to the pressure. “By 2025 we expect the UK population to reach 70 million. We face a significant house-building agenda, especially in the East and South East, the heart of our crop-growing areas.

“In addition, although agriculture only accounts for 1-2% of abstractions, it tends to be used at critical times of the year, especially in terms of watercourse environments.

“We are on a bit of a collision course. Looking at climate change predictions, even in normal times there will only be just enough to go round.”

As well as the effects of the weather, the government’s Water White Paper could result in wholesale reform of the existing abstraction regime, says Mr Hammett.

“Our view is if government is serious about national food security we need an abstraction system that recognises the need for improved water security. We are not expecting legislation for two or three years and the system may take a decade to change, but any farmer abstracting water faces potentially business-changing decisions.”

Put all these factors together and the need to improve farming’s water resilience becomes clear, says Mr Hammett.

Several key actions were identified by the Agricultural Sub Group of the National Drought Group, set up in 2012 and jointly led by the NFU and CLA. Members included the UK Irrigation Association and the Environment Agency plus other interested parties and industry bodies.

Of those actions, reservoir construction is the most important way to improve water security, Mr Hammett believes.

“Construction is expensive and we are looking at ways to make this more affordable. An easing of costly and lengthy planning controls and licensing would be a real help, as would fiscal and financial incentives.

“We are making repeated demands to the Treasury to introduce capital allowances for reservoir construction and we need more grants – Rural Development Programme funding is very welcome, but not many schemes qualify.”

Collaborative ventures built in strategic areas of a catchment might be the way ahead, he suggests. “Farmers could work with local water companies to provide environmental benefits, such as flood management in the winter and helping river flows in the summer.”

A wider partnership approach with all water users is key, Mr Hammett maintains. One area he believes has real potential is the development of abstractor groups into local water resource groups, involving all users in a catchment.

“One of the lessons we learned last year was that abstractor groups did a really useful job in local management of water resources. They knocked on doors, and talked to other users in a bid to put an end to operating in silos. We want to move this forward.

“By involving all users, such as water companies and business users, they could exchange information on their needs and availability. It could also provide real-time information on supplies during drought to help farmers manage risks.”

The introduction of much-needed flexibility on abstraction license trading by the Environment Agency in 2012 was welcomed and should be built upon, says Mr Hammett.

The NFU is also focusing on broadening relationships with the food chain to encourage a better understanding of water use in food production. That will allow farmers, processors, manufacturers and retailers to present a common position on water security to government, says Mr Hammett.

Just as water companies are trying to reduce public use, agriculture also needs to use water more efficiently, he notes. “We need to develop and improve our knowledge transfer to help farmers improve their understanding of crop needs and to make better use of water through better technology and equipment.”

Above all, farming and food production must receive its fair share of water, he concludes. Government-funded research is needed to identify farming’s current and future water resilience, and the sector should be closely connected to water company strategy to ensure early involvement in water resource and drought management plans.

Act now to review your water needs

Farmers should take steps now to review their water needs and decide what action to take well before the next drought hits, says Mark Harvett, water resource senior adviser at the Environment Agency (EA).

Climate change could reduce average summer flows of rivers in England and Wales by 50-80% by 2050 – by which time the UK population could increase by 20 million, he says.

Whatever the actual figures turn out to be there’s no doubt that water supplies are set to tighten within a few years. The EA’s Drought Prospects report of 2012 recommended that farmers should take action by constructing reservoirs and working together to maximise water resources, courses of action reiterated in the agricultural sub-group meetings of 2012, says Mr Harvett.

In addition, more immediate action through varying licence regimes and trading licences should be considered, and is something the EA is now keen to encourage. “We never had such a strong call for this as during the last drought,” he says.

“Farmers needed help – many reservoirs were empty. Those who haven’t should act now and apply to extend the period over which they can abstract water to take advantage of high flows that occur beyond the normal winter abstraction period.”

Local EA advisers will assess how flexible the system can be, taking into account other users and the environment and basing their figures on flow measurements over a period of several years.

Other growers should consider licence trading, either purchasing or leasing, to gain access to unused capacity, he advises. “The EA needs to check what impact these trades would have, so farmers need to get their plans in place as soon as possible,” Mr Harvett says.

Farmers also need to understand their licence terms, particularly expiry dates, acting six months ahead to ensure uninterrupted supply.

“A lot of licences expire at the end of March. Growers had until December 2012 to reapply, but many have still to do so. This a really important legal document that gives access to a valuable raw material – we will still consider applications, but applicants need to act quickly.”