Pesticides Voluntary Initiative Project

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As part of a project run by the Environment Agency, three farms were selected for a pilot study to monitor changes introduced within their management schemes as part of the Voluntary Initiative, in which pesticide usage at the farms would be considerably reduced and better managed.

Cresswell Associates were contracted by the EA to carry out a suite of surveys including soil, floral, river corridor, diatom and aquatic invertebrate surveys on adjacent watercourses at each farm to determine if the changes brought about under the Voluntary Initiative had led to improvements to the diversity of the local wildlife. Lee Knight was sub-contracted by Cresswell to carry out the aquatic aspect of these surveys, notably the diatom and aquatic invertebrate sampling and analysis.

Survey areas included: the River Stour at Tithe Farm, Warwickshire; an unnamed drainage ditch at Carr Farm, Norfolk, and West Bower Farm in Somerset which borders the Durleigh Brook and part of the shore of Durleigh reservoir. Sampling of the diatom and aquatic invertebrate communities was undertaken at control sites, upstream of each farm, within the boundaries of each farm’s holdings and downstream to assess if improvements in the diversity of the watercourses had occurred as a result of the better practices in pesticide application and management introduced under the Voluntary Initiative.