Lancaster Environment Centre

MOPS1: ‘Field Testing of Mitigation Options

(£450K, January 2005-June 2008)

This project, which evaluated and tested the cost-effectiveness of practical in-field measures for mitigating sediment and phosphorus (P) loss from land under winter-sown arable crops, is now completed.

The project found that a number of in-field mitigation options have the potential to be cost-effective methods for control of diffuse pollution from arable agriculture.

MOPS2: ‘Mitigation Options for Phosphorus and Sediment 2’

(£850K, April 2008-March 2013)

MOPS2 (£850K) aims to tackle aspects of diffuse pollution from agriculture which were not approached in MOPS1 and which have received limited research attention. The project runs from project (April 2008 to March 2013).

• Losses of sediment and phosphorus from spring-sown crops (such as potatoes), and the effectiveness of different measures for mitigating these losses.
• The role of ponds and constructed wetlands as potential mechanisms to limit sediment and nutrient losses from farm landscapes into streams and rivers.

Further information on the MOPS2 project is available on our MOPS2 website:

MOPS1 is a £450k project (January 2005-June 2008) which developed and tested the cost-effectiveness of practical options for mitigating sediment and phosphorus (P) loss from land under winter-sown arable crops. Mitigation treatments were trialled over three winters on three sites in the UK with contrasting soil types.

The sites used were:

• ADAS (http://www.adas.co.uk) Rosemaund, Herefordshire (silty clay loam soils)
• Severn Trent Water Old Hattons Farm, Staffordshire (sandy soils)
• The Allerton Project (http://www.gct.org.uk/text01.asp?PageId=300), Leicestershire (clay soils)

Treatments were replicated and combinations of treatments were also used. The treatments investigated in this study are suitable for inclusion under Cross Compliance and Environmental Stewardship.

The treatments trialled (Figure 1) included:

• Tramline management
• Cultivation type
• Crop residue management
• Cultivation direction
• In-field barriers

Figure 1. In-field mitigation measures used to reduce sediment and nutrient loss in runoff: (a) minimum tillage, (b) contour cultivation, (c) incorporation of crop residues, (d) vegetative barriers, and (e) tractor wheel track management.

Methodology

Between 16 and 20 unbounded hillslope plots were used at each site for monitoring sediment and P losses from hillslopes (Figures 2 and 3). Storm-event runoff was collected from hillslope plots in tanks, from which water samples were analysed for sediment and P concentrations. These data were then combined with runoff volumes to calculate erosion rates for each plot and determine the most effective in-field treatments for reducing erosion and nutrient loss from arable hillslopes.

Figure 2. Infrastructure used to monitor erosion plots at Old Hattons, Staffordshire.

Figure 3. Erosion plots at Loddington, Leicestershire, used to monitor runoff losses from arable hillslopes.

Results

The main findings of the project were:

1. The most effective treatment was disruption of tractor wheel tracks. Over five site-years, tramline disruption reduced runoff, sediment and P losses by 72-99%, with the reduction in Total P losses being 0.94 kg P ha-1 on average. This treatment cost £2-5 ha-1 at the farm scale when incorporated within an arable crop rotation.

2. Incorporation of crop residues rather than baling and removal of straw reduced losses of runoff, sediment and P by 24-50%, with the reduction in Total P losses being 0.28 kg P ha-1 on average, although these results were not significant. This treatment was not associated with an additional cost unless there were additional farm management factors to take into account such as a market for baled straw or the need to undertake straw chopping as a separate operation.

3. Minimum tillage reduced losses of runoff, sediment and P by 4-98%, with the reduction in Total P losses being 0.30 kg ha-1 on average. This treatment was associated with considerable cost savings of £44-50 ha-1.

4. Contour cultivation reduced losses of runoff, sediment and P by 45-79%, with the reduction in Total P losses being 0.30 kg P ha-1. This treatment was not associated with an additional cost.

5. Including a 2 m wide vegetative barrier on the contour reduced losses of runoff, sediment and P by 9-97%, with the reduction in Total P losses being 0.24 kg P ha-1. This treatment cost £2-5 ha-1, with a small cost also required for establishment and ongoing maintenance.

6. Treatment effectiveness varied with climatic conditions, soil type and management.

The project also used novel sediment tracing techniques through field application and monitoring of Rare Earth Oxides. These have the potential to help identify sediment and source areas and develop our understanding of the processes of sediment and sediment-associated pollutant transfer from land to water. The results of the first of these experiments are described in Stevens & Quinton 2008 (appendix 5.1.1, file attached to email), and the results of the second will be available shortly.

Final Report

What’s wrong with our water?

Many lakes and rivers across Europe are polluted. High sediment concentrations can disturb aquatic ecosystems, and sediment is associated with the transport of pesticides, pathogens, toxic metals and nutrients, including phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) (Bilotta & Brazier 2008). P is growth-limiting in freshwaters, and rivers and lakes may become eutrophic where concentrations are high, leading to algal blooms, fish kills and loss of biodiversity. In the UK, the Biodiversity Action Plan estimates that over 70% of lakes are eutrophic, and each year, damage costs related to the loss of habitats and resources exceed £100 million, while policy response costs including water treatment account for £55 million (Pretty et al. 2003).

Concern about water quality has resulted in EU policy drivers to protect rivers and lakes. Under the requirements of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) (2000/60/EC), surface waters must achieve ‘good chemical and ecological status’ by 2015. In the UK, studies indicate that P concentrations need to be an order of magnitude lower in fresh waters to comply with the requirements of the WFD (Environment Agency 2000a, 2000b).

How can MOPS help?

In the UK it is estimated that agricultural activities account for 20% of P inputs to surface waters (White and Hammond, 2009). Controlling the transfer of diffuse pollutants in runoff from agricultural land is therefore a priority for catchment managers. The aim of the ‘Mitigation Options for Phosphorus and Sediment’ (MOPS) projects is to assess the effectiveness of methods which can be used to reduce diffuse pollution from agriculture.

The MOPS1 project evaluated in-field measures to reduce sediment and nutrient losses from agriculture, and found that a number of in-field mitigation options have the potential to be cost-effective methods for control of diffuse pollution from arable agriculture.

The MOPS2 project builds on this work, and aims to fill in some of the gaps which still exist in relation to our understanding of agricultural diffuse pollution, including mitigation runoff and pollution losses from spring-sown crops, and the use of edge-of-field options such as farm ponds and wetlands.

Although in-field mitigation options have been shown to be effective, much of the diffuse pollution loss may not occur in runoff over the field surface, but may be transferred to the stream through the soil or field drains. As yet there are no practical in-field measures which can be used to reduce subsurface pollution losses, and it is proposed that we can contain runoff and pollutants at the edge of the field in areas designed to store water and sediment, before allowing runoff to overflow to the stream.

The findings of the MOPS projects feed directly into agricultural management schemes such as Environmental Stewardship and Catchment Sensitive Farming.

References

Bilotta GS and Brazier RE. 2008. Understanding the influence of suspended solids on water quality and aquatic biota. Water Research 42(12): 2849-2861.

Environment Agency. 2000a. Aquatic Eutrophication in England & Wales. A Management Strategy, Bristol, UK.

Environment Agency. 2000b. Focus on Biodiversity, Bristol, UK.

Pretty JN, Mason CF, Nedwell DB, Hine RE, Leaf S and Dils R. 2003. Environmental costs of freshwater eutrophication in England and Wales. Environmental Science & Technology 37(2): 201-208.

White, P.J., and J.P. Hammond. 2009. The sources of phosphorus in the waters of Great Britain. Journal of Environmental Quality 38:13-26.

Journal papers

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M.S., Bailey, A.P., Jackson, R. and Stevens, C.J. 2010. Contributing Understanding of Mitigation Options for Phosphorus and Sediment to a Review of the Efficacy of Contemporary Agricultural Stewardship Measures. Agricultural Systems.

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M.S., Jackson, R., Bailey, A.P. and Stevens, C.J. 2009. Mitigation options for sediment and phosphorus losses from winter-sown arable crops. Journal of Environmental Quality. 38, 2121-2130

Silgram, M., Jackson, R.J., Quinton, J.N., Stevens, C.J., Bailey, A.P., 2010. Field-scale runoff, suspended sediment, and nutrient losses from disrupted and untreated tramlines. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. doi:10.1002/esp.1894.

Stevens, C.J and Quinton, J.N. 2009. Diffuse pollution swapping in arable agricultural systems. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 39(6), 478-520

Stevens, C.J. and Quinton, J.N., 2009. Policy implications of pollution swapping. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C, 34 (8-9), 589-594

Stevens, C.J., Quinton, J.N., Bailey, A.P., Deasy, C., Silgram, M. and Jackson, R. 2009. The effects of minimal tillage, contour cultivation and in-field vegetative barriers on soil erosion and phosphorus loss. Soil and Tillage Research. 106(1), 145-151

Published conference papers

Bailey, A.P., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Stevens, C.J. and Jackson, R. Mitigation of Phosphorous and Sediment (MOPS): Is there a cost-effective solution? In Heckrath, G. Rubaek, B. Kronvang, B. (Eds). Diffuse Phosphorus Loss. Risk Assessment, Mitigation Options and Ecological Effects in River Basins. Proceedings of the 5th International Phosphorus Workshop (IPW5), 3-7 September 2007, Silkeborg, Denmark, Plant Science, 130, 309-311.

Bailey, A.P., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Stevens, C.J. and Jackson, R. Determining the cost effectiveness of solutions to diffuse pollution: the case of in-field mitigation options for phosphorous and sediment loss. In: Proceedings of the 16th International Farm Management Association Congress, A Vibrant Rural Economy – The Challenge for Balance, Peer Reviewed Papers, Volume II, 16-20 July 2007, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland, 657-664.

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N., Stevens, C.J., Silgram, M., Jackson, R., and Bailey, A.P. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS): Reducing pollution in surface runoff from arable fields. In Crighton, K and Audsley, R. Agriculture and the Environment VII. Land Management in a Changing Environment. Proceedings of the SAC/SEPA Biennial Conference, 26-27 March 2008, Edinburgh, Scotland, 114-119.

Quinton, J.N., Deasy, C., Stevens, C.J., Silgram, M., Jackson, R., and Bailey, A.P. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS): Tillage treatments and the use of vegetative barriers. In Heckrath, G. Rubaek, B. Kronvang, B (Eds). Diffuse Phosphorus Loss. Risk Assessment, Mitigation Options and Ecological Effects in River Basins. Proceedings of the 5th International Phosphorus Workshop (IPW5), 3-7 September 2007, Silkeborg, Denmark, Plant Science, 130, 295-7.

Silgram, M., Jackson, R., Quinton, J., Stevens, C.J., and Bailey, A.P. 2007. Can tramline management be an effective tool for mitigating phosphorus and sediment loss? In Heckrath, G., Rubaek, B., Kronvang, B. (Eds). Diffuse Phosphorus Loss. Risk Assessment, Mitigation Options and Ecological Effects in River Basins. Proceedings of the 5th International Phosphorus Workshop (IPW5), 3-7 September 2007, Silkeborg, Denmark, Plant Science, 130, 287-290.

Stevens, C.J. and Quinton, J.N. Field testing of mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS). In: Gairns, L, Crighton, K and Jeffrey, B. (Eds.). Agriculture and the Environment VI. Managing Rural Diffuse Pollution. Proceedings of the SAC/SEPA Biennial Conference, 5-6 April 2006, Edinburgh, Scotland. 244-248.

Unpublished conference papers

Bailey, A.P., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Stevens, C.J. and Jackson, R. Determining the cost effectiveness of solutions to diffuse pollution: developing a model to assess in-field mitigation options for phosphorous and sediment loss. Paper presented at the 81st Agricultural Economics Society Conference, 2-4 April 2007, University of Reading, UK

Bailey, A.P., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Stevens, C.J., Deasy, C. and Jackson, R. Mitigation Options for Phosphorous and Sediment (MOPS): Determining the cost effectiveness of in-field mitigation options at the farm and regional level. Paper presented at the 82nd Agricultural Economics Society Conference, March 31-April 2 2008, Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, UK

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N., Stevens, C.J., Silgram, M., Jackson, R. and Bailey, A.P. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS): Reducing pollution in surface runoff from arable fields. Paper presented at the 15th International Congress of ISCO, 18-23 May 2008, Budapest, Hungary

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M, Jackson, R. and Bailey, A.P. Controlling Sediment in Arable Landscapes, Experiences from the United Kingdom. Presented at the Final Cost 634 International Conference, On- and Off-site Environmental Impacts of Runoff and Erosion, 30 June – 4 July 2008, Aveiro, Portugal

Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Deasy, C., Stevens, C.J., Jackson, R., Bailey, A.P. and Heathwaite, A.L. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS): Overview and results of the first two years. Paper presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 15-20 April 2007, Vienna, Austria

Quinton, J.N. Silgram, M, Deasy, C, Stevens, C.J., Jackson, R., Bailey, A.P. and Heathwaite, A.L. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS): Overview and results of the first two years. Paper presented at the Meeting of COST 869 Working Group 3, 27-29 November 2007, Devon, UK

Quinton, J.N. and Deasy, C. How do soil and tillage practices regulate surface pollutant losses? Paper presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 13-18 April 2008, Vienna, Austria

Silgram, M., Jackson, R.J., Quinton, J.N., Stevens, C.J. 2006. Practical mitigation options for controlling sediment and phosphorus loss at hillslope scale. Paper presented at the BHS 9th National Hydrology Symposium, Land Management and the Protection of the Water Environment: Understanding the Impact of New Legislation, 10-13 September 2006, Durham, UK

Silgram, M., Jackson, R., Quinton, J.N., Stevens, C.J. and Bailey, A.P. Tramlines. Paper presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 15-20 April 2007, Vienna, Austria

Poster presentations

Bailey, A. P., Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Deasy, C., Stevens, C.J. Jackson, R. and Heathwaite, A.L. Mitigation Options for Phosphorus and Sediment (MOPS): determining cost effectiveness. Poster presented at the IPSS/SCI meeting on Soil and Water Protection through Integrated Catchment Management, 16 October 2007, London, UK

Deasy, C., Quinton, J.N. and Silgram, M. Hillslope monitoring approaches to assess pollution losses from arable land. Poster presented at the International Workshop on Agriculture, Water Management and Climate Change, 4-6 March 2008, Bath, UK

Deasy, C., Quinton and Stoate, C. Constructed wetlands to reduce diffuse pollution from agriculture. Poster presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 19-24 April 2009, Vienna, Austria

Deasy, C. and Quinton, J.N. Monitoring techniques to assess soil erosion and nutrient loss from arable land to water within the Mitigation of Phosphorus and Sediment (MOPS) project. Poster presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 13-18 April 2008, Vienna, Austria

Quinton, J.N., Silgram, M., Bailey, A. P., Deasy, C., Stevens, C.J., Jackson, R. and Heathwaite, A.L. Mitigation Options for Phosphorus and Sediment (MOPS). Poster presented at the IPSS/SCI meeting on Soil and Water Protection through Integrated Catchment Management, 16 October 2007, London, UK

Silgram, M., Jackson, R., Quinton, J.N, Bailey, A. P., Stevens, C.J. and Heathwaite, A.L. Can tramline disruption mitigate against phosphorus and sediment loss in surface runoff? Poster presented at the IPSS/SCI meeting on Soil and Water Protection through Integrated Catchment Management, 16 October 2007, London, UK

Silgram, M., Jackson, R., Quinton, J.N., Bailey, A. P., Stevens, C.J. and Heathwaite, A.L. Mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment: residue management on erodable sandy soils. Poster presented at the IPSS/SCI meeting on Soil and Water Protection through Integrated Catchment Management, 16 October 2007, London, UK

Stevens, C.J. and Quinton, J.N. Field testing of mitigation options for phosphorus and sediment (MOPS). Poster presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, 2-7 April 2006, Vienna, Austria