The following Danish report contains a study on 22 mitigation options:
Schou J.S., Kronvang, B., Birr-Pedersen, K., Jensen, P.L., Rubæk, G.H. Jørgensen, U. &
Jacobsen, B. 2007.Virkemidler til realisering af målene i EUs Vandrammedirektiv. Udredning
for udvalg nedsat af Finansministeriet og Miljøministeriet: Langsigtet indsats for bedre
vandmiljø. Faglig rapport fra DMU, no. 625, 132 pp. (in Danish with English summary).
List of options studied:
Changed farming methods
1. Conversion of extensive cattle production to organic production methods
2. Ammonia fertilisers instead of NO3
3. Catch crops – current practice
4. Optimised use of catch crops
5a. Demand for “injection of manure” from harvest to April
5b. No tilt or plowing from harvest to April 1
6. Reduced N-application by 80%
7. Harvest of hay instead of permanent cattle grazing
8. Reduced N-application to pastures
9. Catch crops in two years after plowing of permanent pastures
10. Early sowing of winter crops
11. Only winter crops and undersowing of catch crops on fields with high risk of soil erosion
12. Reduced P-application
13. Fertilisers instead of manure
Change in land use
14. Permanent energy crops on land in rotation
15. Permanent grassland on land with high risk of soil erosion
16. Buffer zones with permanent grassland adjacent to lakes and streams
17. Permanent grassland on high lying fields
18. Afforestation of agricultural land
19. Permanent pastures or grassland in river valleys
Technical measures
20. Incineration of livestock manure
21. Stop dredging of streams
22. Restoration of streams
The following English report contains a study on 44 mitigation options:
Cuttle, S.P. , C.J.A. Macleod, D.R. Chadwick, D. Scholefield, P.M. Haygarth, P. Newell-Price, D. Harris, M.A. Shepherd,
B.J. Chambers & R. Humphrey. 2007. An inventory of methods to control diffuse water pollution from agriculture (DWPA).
User Manual. Prepared as part of Defra Project ES0203, IGER and ADAS, UK.
Click here for the full report.
The following options are dicussed in the report:
Land use
| 1
| Convert arable land to extensive grassland
|
| 2
| Establish cover crops in the autumn |
| 3
| Cultivate land for crop establishment in spring rather than autumn
|
| 4
| Adopt minimal cultivation systems
|
| 5
| Cultivate compacted tillage soils
|
| 6
| Cultivate and drill across the slope
|
Soil management
| 7
| Leave autumn seedbeds rough
|
| 8
| Avoid tramlines over winter
|
| 9
| Establish in-field grass buffer strips
|
| 10
| Loosen compacted soil layers in grassland fields
|
| 11
| Maintain and enhance soil organic matter levels
|
| 12
| Allow field drainage systems to deteriorate
|
| 13
| Reduce overall stocking rates on livestock farms
|
| 14
| Reduce the length of the grazing day or grazing season
|
Livestock management
| 15
| Reduce field stocking rates when soils are wet
|
| 16
| Move feed and water troughs at regular intervals
|
| 17
| Reduce dietary N and P intakes
|
| 18
| Adopt phase feeding of livestock
|
| 19
| Use a fertiliser recommendation system
|
| 20
| Integrate fertiliser and manure nutrient supply
|
Fertiliser management
| 21
| Reduce fertiliser application rates
|
| 22
| Do not apply P fertilisers to high P index soils
|
| 23
| Do not apply fertiliser to high-risk areas
|
| 24
| Avoid spreading fertiliser to fields at high-risk times
|
| 25
| Increase the capacity of farm manure (slurry) stores
|
| 26
| Minimise the volume of dirty water produced
|
| 27
| Adopt batch storage of slurry
|
| 28
| Adopt batch storage of solid manure
|
| 29
| Compost solid manure
|
| 30
| Change from slurry to a solid manure handling system
|
Manure management
| 31
| Site solid manure heaps away from watercourses and field drains
|
| 32
| Site solid manure heaps on concrete and collect the effluent
|
| 33
| Do not apply manure to high-risk areas
|
| 34
| Do not spread farmyard manure to fields at high-risk times
|
| 35
| Do not spread slurry or poultry manure to fields at high-risk times
|
| 36
| Incorporate manure into the soil
|
| 37
| Transport manure to neighbouring farms
|
| 38
| Incinerate poultry litter
|
| 39
| Fence off rivers and streams from livestock
|
| 40
| Construct bridges for livestock crossing rivers and streams
|
Farm infrastructure
| 41
| Re-site gateways away from high-risk areas
|
| 42
| Establish new hedges
|
| 43
| Establish riparian buffer strips
|
| 44
| Establish and maintain artificial (constructed) wetlands
|