Lord Gardiner announced that the first grant funding to become available as part of the package will be for farm reservoirs and forestry equipment. Applications opened on 31 July.
The new package also features funding for broadband, rural business support, on-farm processing, arable and horticultural productivity, and resource efficiency.
Host farmers Oliver Paul (pictured with Lord Gardiner) and Andrew Paul were able to demonstrate the benefits of rural funding at the launch event. The Suffolk Food Hall is one of the biggest tourist hubs in the region, bringing together local artists and food producers. It opened in 2012 and created 45 jobs.
As growers of irrigated crops and members of the East Suffolk Water Abstractor Group (ESWAG), the Paul family are also interested in local opportunities for collaboration and innovation in irrigated crop production.
The NFU has welcomed the re-opening of the reservoir scheme which, as the prolonged period of dry weather continues, comes at a time when many farmers are feel increasngly vulnerable to the risk of future drought.
Growers need a secure supply of water to grow our food and farm reservoirs are universally regarded as delivering sustainable water management. This is because they allow surplus water to be captured and used in times of need. But they are very expensive to build and the regulations surrounding their construction, particularly the land use planning system, can be challenging.
Attending the launch event Paul Hammett, NFU water resources specialist, said that the new funding package could help to kick start a much-needed reservoir building programme.
But he expressed disappointment that grant funding rules would bar entry into the scheme for some farmers in our most water-stressed areas.
This is because the scheme rules dictate that applications are ineligible where reservoirs will be used to increase production and when they are sited in a water body which is failing to meet ‘good status’ relating to water quantity as defined by the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD).
“We think that all growers who want to capture and store high river flow water should be encouraged to do so, not just those in certain areas, and we will continue to make this case to Defra”, said Paul Hammett.
Under the water resource management grant scheme applicants can seek funding for the construction of reservoirs, pumps, controls, underground mains, metering, and equipment and software to improve best practice and increase efficiency.
Grants are for a minimum of £35,000 and can cover up to 40% of a project.
You can find more information about the scheme rules in the RDP water resource management handbook. Applications close on 3 April 2018.