Sectoral Activity: Agriculture Strategy & Briefing

Strategy

The successful implementation of NbS in freshwater restoration relies heavily on collaboration and coordination across sectors due to their interdependencies and shared reliance on healthy ecosystems. Each Sectoral Strategy highlights key connections with others, emphasising the need for integrated approaches to overcome challenges and leverage opportunities for transformation.

Agriculture has significant overlaps with multiple sectors, including Peat Extraction, Navigation, Insurance, and WSS. Sustainable agricultural practices, such as wetland restoration and soil conservation, can enhance water quality, regulate water levels for Navigation, and reduce flood risks, which directly benefits the Insurance sector. Improved land management can also stabilize peatlands, supporting the restoration of Peat Extraction sites. However, trade-offs like the economic reliance on drained peatlands and competition for water resources must be addressed. This can be achieved through regulatory reforms, financial incentives, and platforms for stakeholder dialogue that bring together farmers, policymakers, and private sector actors to find mutually beneficial solutions.

Breifing

Agriculture is highly heterogenous but shares a common reliance on water as a key resource and is one of the main land uses in and around river floodplains, wetlands and peatlands. Agricultural food production systems generate diffuse pollution including greenhouse gas emissions and are vulnerable to droughts and floods made worse by climate change. However, adoption of on-farm and catchment wide Nature-based Solutions can improve ecosystem functioning, act as carbon sinks, reduce pollution and improve biodiversity, while helping to buffer floods and increasing water retention in soil and groundwater. This will enable the sector, and Europe, to adapt to Climate Change. MERLIN will help share knowledge about the benefits and practicalities of NbS.

MERLIN project