North Shropshire Farmers Group

Ref: CSFF060011

Group members: 23

Agreement length: 3 years

Area of group: 5140 ha

The North Shropshire Farmers group lies in the Shropshire, Cheshire & Staffordshire Plain & is characterised by the Meres & Mosses landscape.

Through soil & nutrient themes we will develop knowledge within the group of how farm practices can be modified to reduce sediment, nitrate and pesticides reaching priority catchments by investigating soil & manure management; and techniques / infrastructure most suited to farms in our region.
The cross-cutting theme of soil will feed into carbon, pollinator, water quality and flooding targets, through investigating cover crops, tillage & rotation on livestock holdings, mixed farms and on arable holdings where manures are used and roots are grown.
To complement this we will seek to enhance field boundaries & landscape connectivity, focussing on quality delivery of multiple CS priorities including protecting sensitive habitats, supporting resilience of biodiversity, improving water & air quality, restoring / maintaining landscape features & benefitting pollinators.
We will investigate carbon sequestration in farm habitats to inform the improvement of carbon capture in areas of poor agricultural productivity & look at ways to incorporate more wetland habitats such as ponds & reedbeds into farmland, to extend & connect habitats & serve other roles such as flood mitigation or water quality improvement.
We will work with researchers to understand what role vegetative barriers can play in protecting sensitive sites from ammonia emissions.