New campaign looks at reducing agricultural pollution in Wales

An industry-led initiative to tackle pollution from agriculture head-on in Wales will now commence.

The work by the Welsh government's Farming Connect programme and Natural Resources Wales (NRW) will provide support, advice and guidance to farmers to help improve water quality in Welsh rivers.

While general advice on reducing pollution risks will be available to all farmers across Wales, those with land around 28 priority catchments will be encouraged to take advantage of a programme of support through Farming Connect.

The new campaign will focus on supporting farmers to take action to prevent pollution through the improved management of manures, slurries and soils and a reduction in the use of chemicals such as pesticides.

Zoe Henderson, Chair of the Wales Land Management Forum, said agricultural pollution is "severely affecting" the natural environment in Wales.

“NRW staff deal with between 115 and 165 substantiated agricultural pollution incidents to water every year,” Ms Henderson said.

“Through the WLMF, everyone involved is working together in a new way to address agricultural pollution.”

Other support mechanisms include; a one-to-one mentoring service, where farmers can receive up to 22.5 hours of mentoring from another experienced farmer who has addressed issues and introduced solutions on their farm, and planning surgeries, where farmers can access an hours’ worth of advice free of charge from a planning expert.