A drought resilience project which will pay farmers in Devon and Cornwall for creating water storage on their land has received £1 million in funding from Ofwat’s Innovation Fund.
The project, being delivered by Westcountry Rivers Trust and South West Water, will not only contribute to better hydrated wetlands, woodlands and fields, but can help farms manage water demand through dry weather, as well as boost biodiversity.
As part of the initiative, farmers will be paid to create ‘water batteries’, storing up water in soil ‘sponges’ as well as ponds and lakes. These stores will recharge during wet weather and can be drawn down during periods of drought, either for use on the farm to reduce demand on the mains supply, or sold to a range of buyers.
The project is one of 16 projects being awarded a share of £40 million in Ofwat’s latest innovation competition – the Water Breakthrough Challenge.
The Water Breakthrough Challenge encourages initiatives that help to tackle the biggest challenges facing the water sector, such as achieving net zero, protecting natural ecosystems and reducing leakage, as well as delivering value to society.
Carolyn Cadman, Director of Natural Resources, said: 'This exciting project will embed new ways of thinking, valuing and storing water across the South West. The project will explore innovative ways of improving resilience to climate change, which we expect will bring more intense rain and more periods of drought. Working in partnership we will test ways in which farmers can capture and store that intense rainfall on their land, either to use themselves or by selling it onto others.'
David Black, CEO at Ofwat said: 'The water sector has faced mounting pressure over systemic challenges related to the environment and society, while the climate around us continues to drastically change shape. That’s why we’re funding ground-breaking innovations with potential to help us save and reuse water and wastewater products, while supporting wider society.'
Dr Laurence Cauldrick, CEO at Westcountry Rivers Trust said: 'These ecologically connected and distributive ‘smart ponds’ would enhance water retention on land, charging during the winter, and enabling farmers during times of summer drought to either use the water for on-farm needs, thereby alleviating demand on the mains supply, or to sell to recharge our rivers via water companies adding to the water supply grid.'
South West Water has also partnered in five other initiatives awarded funding by Ofwat today. These include a project to unlock the potential of water data to benefit customers, society, and the environment and a project to transform an existing wastewater treatment plant into a ‘Net-Zero hub’, integrating the most promising technologies from across the sector on one site for the first time.
The Water Breakthrough Challenge is part of a series of competitions from Ofwat, run by Challenge Works with Arup and Isle Utilities, designed to drive innovation and collaboration in the sector to benefit individuals, society and the environment.
Previous rounds of the competition have already seen numerous innovative projects win funding for their potential to benefit customers, society and the environment through solutions that introduce rainwater storage systems to local communities and minimise water demand in new building projects.
More information about the winners of the Water Breakthrough Challenge can be found here.