EWCO – Water Quality

<p>Spatial data supporting appropriately located and designed
woodland creation to help reduce pollutants through land use change that
reduces fertilizer application or by creating woodland that intercepts
pollution and sediment before it reaches watercourses.</p>

<p>The layer shows where woodland creation can decrease diffuse
pollution through reduced fertiliser and pesticide usage. <span> </span>It can also protect sensitive soils from;
disturbance and erosion, increase infiltration and reduce water runoff,
intercept sediment and chemical pollutants in run-off and reduce the delivery
of pollutants to watercourses.</p><p>Woodland will be located within groundwater and surface
water Protection Zones, on soils at high risk of erosion or leaching chemical
pollutants, where temporary surface water collects and flows during heavy rain,
on areas receiving runoff from hard standings, on infiltration basins and on
sustainable rural and urban drainage systems and downslope of erosion or
chemical pollutant sources.</p><p><br /></p><p></p><p><span>Data input sources:</span></p><p>2014 Countryside Stewardship Water Quality Priority Areas
(Environment Agency).</p><p><br /></p><p></p><p></p><p>Attributes:</p>

<p>‘Cat’ – the targeting category.</p>

<p>‘AreaHa’ – Area of the feature in hectares.</p><br /><p></p><p></p><p>Lineage:</p>

<p>First published to support the woodland creation grant under
Countryside Stewardship (CS), launched in 2015.<span> 
</span><span> </span>The layer was updated in 2022 -
the ‘Lower Spatial Priority’ category was removed - to cater for the new
England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) scheme.</p>

<p>A detailed methodology describing the development of this
layer can be requested from [e-mail].</p>