FibreBroads
Tom Barrett Broads Authority
FibreBroads will help overcome the barriers we identified as the most significant to adoption of paludiculture. It will also inform our strategic and operational thinking for the Lowland Agricultural Peat workstream going forward.
We will:
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Create further technical knowledge to grow crops via a paludiculture demonstrator and monitor the success of novel planting techniques.
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Develop a spatial planning tool to help target communications and support engagement with the relevant farmers about farming options development and changes they could implement on their farm.
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Create a streamlined process for water related permissions. This will support a simpler pathway through the regulatory process is needed for paludiculture options.
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Develop the elements of a viable business model to be shared with farmers. Including markets assessment and discussions with investors.
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Develop a prototype small scale building, and a network developed amongst relevant professionals (architects, engineers, and surveyors). A symposium to be held at Norwich University of the Arts (NUA), and a prototype installed in a public space in Norwich along with product visualisation.
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Embed ‘Fibre Broads’ as a strategic alliance of paludiculture enterprises which continues to advocate the restoration of peat in the Broads and in Norfolk. Our legacy will be strengthened with our partners, including those in the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark as well as the UK including Fenland Soil, Somerset Levels, North West and the Great Fen Partnerships.
Project aims
Unlock paludiculture ‘the profitable production of wetland crops’ as a new opportunity for farmers in the Broads and Norfolk. By targeting peatland farmers and assessing where change is possible, testing novel propagation, wetland crop systems, and developing a business network around the most viable products, we will help farming systems adapt to climate change and sea level rise.
Paludiculture can happen where there are solutions for complex challenges: agronomy, farmer knowledge, financial viability, water management, and the permissions needed to achieve this system of agriculture.
Our partnership will bring together stakeholders within the Broads Catchment and Norfolk Fens to develop different elements of paludiculture, including crop cultivation, water management issues and paludiculture product development. This will create knowledge and networks, connecting growers with construction businesses, to encourage viable market chains supporting carbon neutrality and nature recovery.
Location
Broads National Park
Project partners
Project Lead: Andrea Kelly, Environment Policy Adviser, Broads Authority
Andrea Kelly is the Environment Policy Adviser for the Broads Authority where she focuses on developing ecological and land management strategy for the Broads National Park, including Nature Recovery Strategy, managing wet farming and wetland restoration projects and engaging with farmers about landscape adaptation in the UK’s largest protected wetland.
Mobile: 07711 451503
Email: andrea.kelly@broads-authority.gov.uk
Email: andrew.walters@broads-authority.gov.uk
Publications and resources
Watertable management projects: We are planning and implementing watertable management strategies and have worked with the Environment Agency to create a new Guide to Water Permissions. Download the Design Guide to Support Water Table and Water Resource Management in the Broads National Park (PDF).
Innovative cropping: We are exploring the growth and harvesting of wetland crops to improve water quality and produce sustainable building products (known as paludiculture). Learn more about our current work on the FibreBroads webpage or watch our short film exploring paludiculture at the Horsey Estate to learn more.
Supporting Farm Advisers: We are creating tools for farm advisers to calculate baseline watertables and water requirements. Download the Excel tool here (XLS).
Engaging with Farmers: We are working closely with farmers, helping them access Countryside Stewardship opportunities. Watch our short film with RG Wright and Sons at Chestnut Farm to learn more.