Water Stewardship in practice: a new wetland to improve water quality in the River Frome

This World Wetlands Day, we’re excited to share the completion of a brand-new farm wetland — a powerful example of nature-based solutions in action!

Matthew Woodard

31/01/25

At The Rivers Trust we have a passion and a relentless drive for finding the right solutions to improve the health of our rivers. But we cannot do this alone, and it often means stepping away from the riverbank and into communities. We work across different areas of activity to influence and change how we collectively manage our water and our land, so that rivers can be restored to good health. This World Wetland’s Day we are celebrating the completion of a farm wetland project!

Thanks to a partnership between Lidl GB, The Rivers Trust, The Wye and Usk Foundation, and a farmer looking to implement natural solutions across his land to reduce the environmental impacts of his operations on a nearby river. This project is a perfect example of how through collaboration we can get interventions in the ground, improve water quality, create more space for nature and more resilient catchments.

The wetland, two connected pools at the bottom of a field, will now intercept water running off from farmyard roofs, clean yard areas and farmland, helping to trap sediment, filter the water, and slow the flow. By replenishing an estimated 24,515 m³ per year, the equivalent of 10 Olympic sized swimming pools full of water will pass through the wetland and be treated before entering the river. The new pools will act as a boost for biodiversity by creating safe spaces and a nursery for species such as dragonflies, frogs, and small mammals like water shrews and water voles. And there’s more! By building this wetland we have increased the capacity for the land to cope with high rainfall events, which is both good for the farm and good for the River Frome.

Wetland in a field Aerial shot of wetland pool People stood in front of wetland construction Aerial shot of wetlands in progress

This project showcases the benefits of nature-based buffers on farms and provides an example that could be replicated across other sites in the catchment. This work is part of Lidl’s wider commitment to the Courtauld 2030 agreement for collective action on water. By creating these new natural spaces around the watercourse, we hope to see a multitude of benefits over the years.

This wetland, and the partnership that has come together to deliver it, shows how we can restore freshwater habitats on agricultural land in ways which also benefit farmers, and address our shared water challenges like drought, flooding and pollution together. By working with nature, we can make the changes needed to improve the state of our rivers, boost biodiversity and help create more sustainable supply chains.

"There is an urgent need to find space in farmland for nature-based buffers such as this farm wetland which can protect space for nature and deliver benefits for water quality and natural flood management."

Bridie Whittle, Senior Catchment Advisor at The Wye and Usk Foundation

In the last year, across The Rivers Trust movement an estimated 894 hectares of wetland were restored or created providing a multitude of benefits for nature and communities. Many of these projects have been delivered in partnership with businesses who want to invest in nature’s recovery, share our commitment to water stewardship and our goal to deliver sustainable solutions for water.

Lidl logo Wye and Usk Foundation logo

Learn more

Visit our partner page to read the full case study and learn more about how Lidl GB, The Rivers Trust, and the Wye & Usk Foundation, are using nature-based solutions to create a more sustainable food supply chain.

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