Supported Nidderdale AONB’s ELMs test and trial through the provision of NFM opportunity maps
The Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty are currently participating in a Defra funded Test and Trial related to the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMs). As part of the trial, natural flood management (NFM) is being incorporated into farm plans. This report details the process of mapping options for farm holdings related to NFM, the time and technical requirements needed to produce maps and lessons learnt.
The main lessons learnt from this project are as follows:
- Mapping offers a vital first step in distinguishing risk areas within land holdings that could be targeted to reduce flood and diffuse pollution risk by installing interventions.
- Mapping can help reduce field work time by distinguishing the main areas of interest on the land holdings.
- Support is required to help feed in local knowledge of the area and farming style, complete ground truthing and engage with the landowner – without the landowner being on board with the interventions, the desired outcomes will not be achieved.
The following interventions have been proposed for the land holdings in this study to help reduce fine grained sediment run off and decrease flood risk: leaky woody dams, hedgerows, buffer strips, tree planting and offline ponds. It’s important to note, that soil management techniques such as reducing compaction can also offer large benefits and should also be considered during the ground truthing stage, but have not been mapped as opportunities.