Site search
DIRECT ACCESS
CONTACT LIST
TOOLBOX

Water

Water splash Organic farmers typically regard water not just as an input into the agricultural cycle, but as a vital resource for fostering life on earth that must be protected and enhanced through careful management. It goes without saying that farmers generally do not use water wastefully because they know how vital careful use can be to the successful growth of plants and livestock. And, while water use is not extensively covered by the EU regulations, organic methods contribute to:

  • Retaining water resources
  • Maintaining the high quality of these water resources
Print version of the pageTo top of the page

Retention

Wherever possible, organic farmers seek to retain natural water resources, such as streams and wetlands, while actively reducing runoff through:

  • Improving soil structure and its water retention capacity through practices such as a multi-annual crop rotation, appropriate plant selection and organic manure use
  • Planting and retaining hedges, meadows and natural vegetation to reduce soil erosion

Organic farmers find that reducing runoff and improving the overall quality of the soil in these ways also helps to reduce the need for crop irrigation in drier areas.

In areas where salinity is a potential problem, the retention of more trees and natural vegetation with deeper roots helps keep the water table lower and avoids salt being brought to the surface.

Print version of the pageTo top of the page

Quality

Meanwhile, organic farming systems help to maintain – or even improve – water quality by reducing the amount of chemicals used in agriculture, which can eventually find their way into lakes, rivers, streams and other bodies of water.

Organic farming restricts synthetic fertilisers and chemical synthetic pesticides, as well as growth enhancers and antibiotics for animals, thereby reducing the risk of these chemicals finding their way into lakes, rivers, streams and other bodies of water. The risk of eutrophication – where excessive algae growth is caused by the leakage of nutrients into these bodies of water, reduces the oxygen content and threatens the health of aquatic plants and animals – is also reduced.