Evaluating land use and management Natural Flood Management potential

Soil use and management as a form of Natural Flood Management (NFM) has potential to increase infiltration and soil water storage above and below ground. As a result, it can slow the flow of water and reduce flooding caused by surface run-off, rivers and groundwater. Here, we report findings from the LANDWISE project, which examined the potential of land use and management in lowland groundwater-fed catchments in the River Thames Basin, England. We focused on five soil classes within two geology types: shallow permeable soils on carbonate geology (Limestone and Chalk) and deep clay soils on mudstone geology; across agricultural land, grassland and woodland. We compared different farming systems, including conventional, innovative and organic agriculture. We gathered empirical evidence of within and between field variation for different soil use and management strategies, through a broad survey of 164 fields and an in-depth survey of 7 sites. We show that both land use and soil type are significant in affecting bulk density. We also show correlation between organic matter and bulk density, which is important for NFM as organic matter content can be controlled by land use and management practices. We adopted a co-production research approach, to deliver usable impacts for farmers who will ultimately deliver NFM through land use change and management. This work will inform policy and design and delivery of agri-environment schemes; such as the soil survey scheme, a key part of the DEFRA soil action plan. It will help co-deliver NFM alongside other ecosystem services.