Woodlands for Water (W4W) is a Defra-supported project and the first to be developed by the ‘Riverscapes’ partnership. The ‘Riverscapes partnership comprises of experts from the National Trust, Woodland Trust and Beaver Trust. They will be on hand to provide expert assistance in the selected river catchment areas across England, ensuring there is pipeline of projects for riparian planting in future years.
For the Severn Rivers Trust, the main project focus area is the River Teme catchment. However, we are also able to support applications within a 20-mile buffer zone, which covers the majority of Shropshire, Worcestershire and parts of Warwickshire and Gloucestershire. Please contact us for more information.
Challenges
To create these woodlands, farmers and landowners will be able to get advice and support from local land management advisers to apply for funding through the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) grant, plus a simple carbon trading offer, which provides greater financial incentives for landowners and farmers to plant and manage trees along rivers, watercourses and wider catchments.
Aims & Targets
- Create: 3,100 hectares of trees in six river catchment areas from Devon to Cumbria
- Improve: water quality by blocking the runoff of pollutants into rivers
- Manage: flood risks by slowing the flow of water
- Boost: biodiversity by creating new habitat corridors
- Climate resilient: rivers by providing shade and cooling water temperatures.
