North York Moors project aims to support farms through conservation

Led by the National Park Authority, with support from Fera Science Ltd and other industry partners, the Defra-funded project is equipping producers with a natural capital assessment of the landscape they farm. The aim is to find ways to boost the natural environment, which also support farm income and long-term business viability.

Thought to be the largest of its kind in the UK, the 16-month project is helping farmers to assess the financial implications of land management changes they could make to help sequester carbon, enhance biodiversity, improve water quality and improve flood management.

This project will also allow farmers to test different land use scenarios using a combination of funding options available, whether that’s public or private funding sources.

Farmers’ interests are at the core of the collaborative project, explains Rebecca Thompson, head of farming and land management at the North York Moors National Park Authority.

“We want to see farmers play an integral role in managing the land for the delivery of public goods, alongside producing quality food,” she says. “With the new system of agricultural support in motion, payments for environmental conservation have to stack up to sustain businesses.

“There’s a huge opportunity for private finance to support projects such as carbon storage or tree planting, alongside existing farming systems. But, with so many options, it can be tricky for producers to know which is the best fit for their farm.

“Private investments into nature-friendly projects often also need to be accessed at a scale beyond that of individual farmers.

“The farms in our National Park are typically 150-200 acres in size. This means individual farms are not necessarily at a scale that will attract private sector funding for capturing carbon, natural flood management, water quality improvements or environmental net gain.

“Hence why it’s so beneficial to bring farmers together, as we have done with this project.”

Creating an accurate farm picture

The ELMS Phase 3 Test & Trial project kicked off in April this year. The first stage involved scientists at Fera using advanced remote sensing technology and geographic information systems (GIS) to create a detailed map of the 1,436sq km National Park.

The landscape, which includes heather moorland, forests and coastline, was mapped into different habitat areas. Each one has been given a score based on carbon storage capacity and biodiversity value.

“We now have a fantastic bank of landscape data, which we’ve shared with our initial group of farmers involved in the project,” says Rebecca. “It gives them an accurate picture of the natural assets present on the land they manage.”

This baseline is a vital starting point to show farmers the quality and quantity of the natural capital they have control over, so this can be included on farm balance sheets – just as you would with physical assets, such as machinery.

“We’ve seen these farmers are all committed to the idea of delivering public goods for public money, but there’s also a lot of uncertainty around which environmental projects to get involved with.

“By carrying out this extensive mapping process, we’re creating a rich pool of data for farmers to base decisions on. It means we’re not blindly stabbing in the dark about the optimal environmental strategy for a particular holding.”

Testing farm opportunities

Fera scientists have also been supporting the National Park team to develop opportunity maps for the region’s farmers.

“Building on the mapping we’ve undertaken with Fera, this autumn we’ve been running more farmer workshops to share what different nature recovery projects could offer farm businesses.

“By modelling investment scenarios in relation to carbon sequestration and biodiversity net gain opportunities, we can give farmers a prediction of what they could achieve environmentally, and how this could stack up alongside business goals.

“The workshops are an ideal opportunity to gather feedback from people with ‘boots on the ground. It’s very much a two-way conversation,” she adds.

“At every step of the project we’re consulting farmers to get their thoughts on proposals and check nothing important is missing within the model.

“By next spring, our aim is that more farmers across the region will be able to apply the economic modelling tool to their own holding, and plan individual land-use scenarios to help futureproof their businesses,” she says.

The need to understand natural capital

Glyn Jones, head of science (plant) at Fera Science Ltd, has hands-on involvement with the project.

Glyn Jones of Fera Science Ltd

“The shift towards paying public money for public goods means understanding land’s natural capital, and how to calculate it, is something farmers have to get to grips with,” he explains.

“Because of the rapidly changing policy landscape, we want to encourage farmers and land managers to work together to provide the ecosystem services everyone is seeking. It’s why projects like this are so important.

“Mapping landscapes is a lot more feasible, practically and from a cost perspective, across a larger area, which incorporates multiple farm holdings.

“By working together on natural capital projects, farmers can have a greater impact on the environment and really make a difference for the future,” he says.

For more information, visit www.fera.co.uk/land360-land-management.