Farmers to see £44m in new support to tackle water pollution

Farmers will be provided £44 million to tackle water pollution as part of a new plan by Defra to clean up UK waters.

The plan, announced on Tuesday (4 April), aims to tackle every source of pollution, including from agriculture, Defra explained.

A key part of the new plan will see additional funding for farmers to better manage slurry storage and to store and use water more efficiently.

An extra £34 million will be provided to farmers to tackle water pollution and boost food production through the Slurry Infrastructure Grant.

Defra said this would help farmers reduce a major source of water pollution by improving slurry storage, as well as the use of organic nutrients on farms.

An additional £10 million has also been announced to establish more farm reservoirs and irrigation, Defra explained.

The second round of the Water Management Grant will fund more on-farm reservoirs and better irrigation equipment.

Announcing the Plan for Water, Defra Secretary Thérèse Coffey said that tackling the UK's water issues was not straightforward.

"I completely understand the concerns that people have about the health and resilience of our waters.

"That includes higher penalties taken from water company profits which will be channelled back into the rivers, lakes and streams where it is needed.

"That’s why we have developed this plan and we are committed to delivering the progress that people want to see."

The plan also includes increasing the scope and maximum amount the Environment Agency can secure in penalties for water firms for damaging the environment.

Environment Agency chair Alan Lovell welcomed the move: "I am pleased to see today’s consultation on enabling the agency to levy much larger penalties for pollution alongside the criminal fines we seek in the courts.

"Nature must be supported and the polluter must pay. These new measures will help us hold the water industry and others to account."