Defra's water minister discussed drought resilience strategies during a "positive and constructive" meeting with Norfolk farmers.

Rebecca Pow met agricultural businesses across the county and hosted a roundtable meeting with farming and wildlife groups in the Broads.

The region was hit hard by drought following last year's heatwave summer, and many farmers have also seen their water abstraction licences reduced or revoked to ease environmental pressures.

The minister discussed the government’s approach to water resilience in the region, including the £10m Water Management Grant to fund more reservoirs and better irrigation equipment.

She also highlighted plans to improve water resource planning, invest in key supply infrastructure, and modernise the abstraction system - such as using technology to send e-alerts directly to farmers when water is available for abstraction.

"Drought conditions over the last year have been difficult for farmers and local wildlife in Norfolk and last week’s meeting was important to hear first-hand from primary producers and environmental partners – particularly as the challenges surrounding water security continue to grow," she said.

"It highlighted the need for every sector to think about their water requirements for the future; and the need for collaboration both regionally and at catchment level on infrastructure needs."

Steve Moncaster is membership and technical advisor for BAWAG (Broadland Agricultural Water Abstractors Group) - one of the organisations taking part in the meeting which also included Water Resources East, Natural England, Anglian Water, and the Norfolk Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG).

"The whole discussion was really positive and constructive," he said. 

"For us as abstractors, the focus was on the role of water resource planning within the sector as a way of helping farmers understand what the issues are, and enabling them to adjust to the requirements of sustainable abstraction.

"I think we all left understanding the importance of planning, as well as understanding more about the government's water management grants and support for things like reservoirs."