Reducing soil erosion could save billions

New research shows that more than €7 billion could be saved by altering farming practices to reduce soil erosion. The fuel and labour costs involved in ploughing fields and the financial implications of soil erosion as it affects water tables could be off-set by a better, more targeted approach to sowing crops, the study co-financed by the European Commission shows.

Rather than ploughing fields, which causes soil to run off fields during rain, the plan proposes sowing seeds in ridges. The study shows that this would reduce the harmful effects of soil erosion and allow for better habitats for insects, birds and mammals. This would be achieved through increased ground-cover for ground-nesting birds, greater precision in the use of pesticides and more diverse crop rotations which would give greater feeding and nesting opportunities.

But the plan would need herbicides to get rid of weeds, though the director of the project says no more herbicides would be needed than are already used on crops. "It is better to produce soil with a couple of kilogrammes of herbicide per hectare than to spend seven litres of diesel per hectare to plough a field which then erodes it resulting in the loss of 200 million tonnes of soil per annum in the EU15 alone," said Mike Lane, director of the SOWAP project which conducted the study. The project was also funded by Syngenta, an agribusiness firm which produces herbicides and pesticides.

Specialised equipment would also be needed for the change in crop sowing, a factor which would have cost implications for farmers, the study concedes.

While the plan already has a 40% uptake in the UK, it is used in less than 10% of farms in the rest of the EU. Lane said the optimum use would be 60% across the EU, as not all soil types would be suitable.

The study comes as the Commission finalises a soil strategy which will set out guidelines on how to protect against pollution and erosion. The strategy mentions reduced tillage of soil as one of the measures that member states could promote to combat erosion.

New research shows that more than €7 billion could be saved by altering farming practices to reduce soil erosion. The fuel and labour costs involved in ploughing fields and the financial implications of soil erosion as it affects water tables could be off-set by a better, more targeted approach to sowing crops, the study co-financed by the European Commission shows.