Farmers still waiting for £15m reservoir grant launch

Farmers in England hoping to build reservoirs with support from a promised £15m government grant fear delays to the scheme could leave them unable to capture winter water supplies.

After a summer drought that hit crop yields and livestock water availability, the NFU says growers cannot afford a repeat.

Recent rainfall has been welcome, but farmers stress it will only make a difference if they have the capacity to store it, with concerns already growing over water availability next year.

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“The question I was being asked time and time again was, when does the window open?” the NFU’s Horticulture and Potatoes Board chair, Martin Emmett, told Farmers Weekly after meeting members from Lincolnshire to Kent.

“There are so many farm businesses that cannot afford to have a year like the one we’ve just had. They are primed and ready to get going with this fund as soon as possible,” Mr Emmett added.

“But with autumn now well advanced and the grant scheme yet to open, farmers fear they could miss the winter refill period despite being ready to get started.”

The government has pledged up to £15m to reopen the Water Management Grant for a third round.

Applications open ‘very shortly’

Defra has yet to publish an opening date, but prime minister Andy Burnham told MPs last week that the application system would open “very shortly”.

The NFU fears demand could outstrip the available funding. Previous rounds saw some money go unspent as projects stalled over planning and regulatory hurdles.

This time, farmers have projects ready, and even livestock businesses that had never considered water storage are now weighing it up.

The NFU’s water resources specialist, Dr Mark Betson, said previous rounds covered up to 40% of eligible costs, up to a maximum grant of £500,000, with the remaining 60% funded by the applicant.

“There is concern that the £15m will be used up immediately. There is a lot of interest, especially from the horticulture sector,” said Dr Bettson.

Defra says the £15m fund could support about 100 farms and that further funding may be considered if demand exceeds expectations.

The new round is expected to operate competitively, although its detailed eligibility and application rules have yet to be published.

Planning remains another hurdle. Mr Emmett pointed to one West Sussex farm that went from a planning application to a 120,000cu m reservoir in three months.

But he warned that biodiversity net gain requirements and Environment Agency involvement can add cost and delay.

Abstraction licences are a further problem, Mr Emmett said. Many last just six years, despite reservoirs being written down over 30 years.

Longer 18- and 24-year licences are being granted, but still carry six-year notice periods.

“Financing projects like these is even harder without certainty over their long-term future, which makes grant support all the more important for farmers,” he added.

The government also brought forward opportunities for farmers to refill reservoirs this year, with the Environment Agency allowing eligible abstraction licence holders to take water outside their normal authorised period during October.

Defra response

A Defra spokesperson said: “We’re helping farmers build resilience to future droughts with £65m of investment, including an extra £50m for Sustainable Farming Incentive agreements and up to £15m to reopen the Water Management Grant, so farmers can invest in on-farm reservoirs to store water.”

The NFU estimates 48% of the potato area is equipped for irrigation, but farmers say infrastructure counts for little if there is insufficient water available to store.