Farmers ‘should be paid’ to look after own soil
● As important as woodlands in the battle against climate change
Paying farmers to look after their soil could curb flooding, boost crop production and wildlife, and help tackle climate change, a report says.
The Royal Society report warns poorly-managed soils which are compacted or eroding can reduce yields, contribute to floods and hit water quality.
Many farmers are already taking care of soils, but while doing so delivers wider benefits, it can come with costs for which they are not reimbursed.
However, the Agriculture Bill, which sets out a new subsidy regime to replace the EU’S common agricultural policy based on “public money for public goods”, includes provision for payments for protecting or improving soil quality.
Experts behind the report said soil was treated as “out of sight, out of mind”, but people should be as appalled by badly managed soils as the loss of woods or wetlands.
The report highlights soil can act as natural flood management by increasing the amount of water seeping into the ground and storing water through its uptake into root systems, but compacted soils prevent this. Good soil “structure” can improve yields by providing a habitat for earthworms and other organisms which recycle nutrients and prevent erosion.
Healthy soil supports plants and animals above the ground and helps control pests and diseases, the report said.
The report also highlights how huge amounts of carbon from plants and other organic matter is trapped and stored in soils, so managing them well makes them more productive and helps in the climate fight.
Alastair Fitter, emeritus
Professor of ecology at the University of York and a lead Royal Society Fellow on the report, said: “We should be as appalled by badly managed soils in our fields as we are by the loss of our woods or wetlands. Our soils lock away more carbon than the vegetation on them. They provide 95 per cent of our food and when managed well they limit the risk of flooding, while supporting a vast array of life.
“Too often, though, they are ‘out of sight, out of mind’.”
He added: “The government is at a critical moment in setting the course for British farming outside the EU and this evidence synthesis shows how important it is that soils take centre stage in land management policy.”
The experts said news measures were needed such as planting cover crops instead of leaving fields bare in winter, planting grass leys in rotation, more hedges, and developing small wetlands alongside crops or pasture.
A menu of evidence-based options will be needed for payments, experts said.