East Anglia may be the driest region of the UK, but it is also an important area for food production. Delegates at a recent conference in Ipswich heard how novel solutions to the water crisis are required if the area’s agricultural and horticultural production is not to be limited in the future.
According to the East Anglian Daily Times, Daniel Johns, Water Resources East managing director, described the dire water situation in the East of England at the Interreg 2 Seas closing conference and said urgent action was needed.
“We are already water stressed. The Environment Agency has already classified the whole of the East of England as severely water stressed and that’s coming through in the state of our natural environment,” he said. “Ninety-two per cent of the rivers in the East of England are below good ecological status.
This could mean that by 2050 the area faces a deficit of 640 million litres of water a day unless drastic changes are made, including reducing summer abstraction and reusing more grey water.
Water Resources East, whose members include the NFU and Anglian Water, has produced a draft action plan for eastern England, with a consultation on the proposals just closed. Without action, Daniel warned the conference that high value crops currently grown in the East will be particularly vulnerable.