Fife crop supplies ‘remain incredibly fragile’ as farmers’ water ban lifted

A Fife farming leader has warned supplies of crops in the kingdom remain “incredibly fragile” despite a water ban being lifted.

Sepa temporarily suspended licences for abstracting water on Saturday in response to a prolonged period of dry weather.

A full ban was imposed for 56 farmers in the River Eden catchment area and 23 were handed a partial suspension.

The move meant farmers were unable to use natural sources like rivers for watering their fields.

It led to fears that millions of pounds’ worth of crops could be ruined, with one local grower saying it could be “catastrophic”.

Following rain this week, Sepa removed the ban at 1pm on Wednesday, meaning farmers can resume normal operations.

However, the environment watchdog has warned that the recent improvement in conditions is likely to be “short-term”.

Iain Brown from the NFU, who grows soft fruit and broccoli at Anstruther, described the news as a “huge relief” but says the organisation remains against blanket abstraction bans.

He said: “Sepa’s commitment to constantly review water flows and alter licencing arrangements as quickly as it can is appreciated.

Highly vulnerable crops such as broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce should be prioritised to support vital food production

“Farmer co-operation and compliance with the abstraction restrictions will have played a significant part in water levels in the Eden recovering so quickly.

“That said, the situation remains incredibly fragile.

“Highly vulnerable crops such as broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce should be prioritised to support vital food production.

“We continue to seek a way to allow irrigation to continue for the crops most at risk when water is unavailable.”

Fife farmers praised for actions

Rob Morris, senior manager of the rural economy unit at Sepa, says there was a 38% rise in river levels within a few hours of the ban being imposed.

He said: “This shows the impact their actions had, and their support has been critical in allowing water levels to recover to a point where suspensions are no longer required.

“Suspending abstraction licences is only done when necessary and is not a decision we take lightly.

“We’ll continue to monitor river levels across Scotland, and make our decisions based on science and the need to need to prevent long-term damage to local water environments that we rely on.

“With further dry weather in the forecast, it’s important that everyone abstracting water continues to manage their water use carefully.”