Soil is one of the most important assets on any farm; without it, we simply would not be able to produce the food we need. It also has a huge impact on the quality of water. Excess soil that finds its way into watercourses creates all sorts of problems, from silting up watercourses to raising phosphate levels. The current focus surrounding this topic is very much on the Farming Rules for Water regulations, however regulation surrounding soil management and protection has been a part of cross compliance for some time.
GAEC 5 (Good Agricultural Environmental Condition 5) sets out guidance for targeting and preventing on-farm soil erosion by putting in place ‘practical measures’ by considering the following:
- Cropping practices and cropping structures
- Livestock management, including outdoor pigs and poultry, causing overgrazing and poaching
- Wind
- Vehicles, trailers and machinery
In the case of a cross compliance inspection, it is important that you can show you have considered the above and put in place actual measures to prevent or limit soil erosion on land that you farm and/or are responsible for the cross compliance on.
The signs of soil erosion
The most common signs of soil erosion are as shown in the table below:
| Erosion Type | Sign |
| Water erosion | Channels (rills and gulleys) in the soil |
| Water erosion | Soil wash or sheet erosion where soil is washed but no channels are formed (often seen as muddy run-off) |
| Water erosion | Deposits of eroded soil in valley bottoms, adjacent land, roads, watercourses, semi-natural habitats and/or property |
| Water erosion | Localised flooding and pollution of watercourses with silt or muddy water |
| Wind erosion | Soil blown over crops, adjacent land, roads, watercourses, semi-natural habitats and / or property |
How to protect your soils
Soil erosion can be caused by a variety of factors, but some activities are more likely to lead to high levels of erosion and run-off. Below are suggestions on how to limit erosion when carrying out some of these activities.
Cropping Practices
Spring cropping
If spring cropping is part of the rotation, consider keeping a cover on the soil over winter, and cultivating in the Spring to prevent erosion from excess rain.
Covers could include over winter stubbles left for natural regrowth, a planted cover or catch crop, or under sowing the previous crop with grass.
If preparation of the seedbed must be carried out in the autumn, ensure that the fields you choose for Spring cropping are low risk, e.g. level/ gently sloping fields with no internal watercourses, or large grass buffers to protect any nearby watercourses, and break up the slope.
Rough cultivations to remove compaction can be beneficial to allow water infiltration and limit erosion via water run-off.
Row crops
To limit soil erosion from row crops:
- Plant headland rows and beds across the base of the slope to intercept run-off from high-risk ground
- Remove compaction in some wheelings to allow water to penetrate into the soil (although care is needed not to make the soil erosion worse)
- Use specialised equipment to leave ridges and indentations in the soil to trap run-off
- Establish grass strips in valleys or along contours or slopes to reduce run-off
- Create banks and diversion ditches within the field to intercept and slow down run-off
Wind erosion
- Wind erosion can be limited by:
- Creating coarse seedbeds where possible
- Sowing nurse barley crops to protect the soil where appropriate
- Using a fleece over vegetable crops
- Applying regular applications of organic wastes to improve soil stability
- Planting shelterbelts to break the speed of the wind
Livestock
Livestock can cause soil erosion via trampling bank sides and heavy poaching (compaction caused by hooves) on waterlogged ground.
Outwintering livestock
Where livestock are kept outside during the winter, consider the below approaches to minimise soil erosion:
- Choose well-drained, relatively flat fields
- Move stock regularly and use back fencing
- Fence watercourses, where appropriate, to avoid excessive bankside erosion
- Loosen the soil as soon as conditions allow, for example by ploughing, subsoiling and sward lifting, to help water to penetrate the soil.
- Use low ground pressure vehicles and machinery
- Use established tracks to avoid vegetation damage
- Adjust stocking rates to conserve vegetation cover and to avoid trampling of the soil and creation of sheep scars
Vehicles, Trailers and Machinery
It isn’t always possible to avoid the use of vehicles and machinery during winter and other wetter periods of the year. Therefore, consider how you can avoid damaging the soil whilst driving across the land.
- Avoid out-wintering livestock and planting crops on high-risk fields (e.g. steeply sloping, heavy soils, close proximity to watercourses)
- Use lower tyre pressures to ease compaction from tractors and trailers
- Consider installing hardcore tracks for routes used regularly by vehicles and livestock
- Install or maintain land drainage to reduce waterlogged areas
- Where possible, carry out supplementary feeding on level, freely drained ground and away from watercourses
You could lose some of your scheme payments if you have not taken all reasonable steps to prevent erosion over a single area of 1 or more hectares, or where it has been caused by livestock trampling along a continuous stretch of a watercourse that is 20 or more metres long and 2 or more metres wide.
For full detailed guidance on GAEC 5 see: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/guide-to-cross-compliance-in-england-2022/gaec-5-minimising-soil-erosion
