A project led by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology has made a major contribution to the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming and our Land consultation through evidence collected by the Environment & Rural Affairs Monitoring and Modelling Programme (ERAMMP).
The consultation, which is open until 30 October 2019, sets out how the Welsh Government proposes to support farmers after Brexit.
As part of the policy development process, the Welsh Government commissioned the research community to develop a robust scientific evidence base. An integrated analysis of this evidence base by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) is available on the ERAMMP website.
ERAMMP delivered nine evidence reviews and tested the possible outcomes of almost 60 potential agricultural and woodland interventions, then CEH led on the integrated analysis of the reviews.
The approach recognises that many interventions by farmers have a wide range of impacts beyond their immediate purpose, as our environment is a complex system with many interactions and feedbacks.
The work involved more than 25 scientists from ERAMMP partners including ADAS, Bangor University, British Trust for Ornithology, Cranfield University, eftec, Institute of European Environmental Policy, Forest Research and Ricardo.
At CEH we are very proud of the contribution that our evidence will make to a more sustainable future for Wales - Professor Bridget Emmett
Professor Bridget Emmett, CEH's Science Area Head for Soils and Land Use, said: “The Welsh environment supports significant economic sectors including agriculture, fisheries, tourism and forestry and is of importance to other policy areas such as health and wellbeing, energy and infrastructure.
“ERAMMP has delivered the robust evidence base on the relationship between actions on farm and the delivery of environmental outcomes required by the Welsh Government to develop policy suggestions for the post-Brexit landscape, which are now under consultation.
“CEH has coordinated and led the project, supporting our partners and ensuring the right level of expertise for multiple areas of research, whether it is flood mitigation, woodland planting or soil protection.
“With long-term, nationally significant projects like this, it is essential to bring specialists from different organisations together.
“At CEH we are very proud of our team approach, the success of ERAMMP and the contribution that our evidence will make to a more sustainable future for Wales.”
Further information
The overall aim of ERAMMP is to deliver a programme of monitoring and modelling which collects data across the Welsh landscape and links any changes to their impacts on a wide range of benefits including their economic consequences.
ERAMMP is led by CEH and includes 20 partners from across Wales and the UK more widely, including universities, research centres, NGOs and consultancies. All partners specialise in the provision of high quality, independent scientific research and advice. Find out more about ERAMMP at https://erammp.wales/en/resources and read the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming and our Land consultation document here.
