Natural Flood Management: Harnessing nature’s power in West Somerset

This guide has been produced to offer clear, simple advice to anyone interested in introducing natural flood management (NFM) measures onto their land or into their community.

The guide covers the different NFM interventions available and their benefits, as well as advice on how and where they might be best used. It outlines the rationale behind using NFM, as well as providing information on funding and financial incentives. Methods discussed include leaky dams, scrapes, bunds, swales, sediment traps, soil management, buffer strips, hedgerows, wet woodlands, floodplain reconnection and ponds, with links to more detailed fact sheets (these are produced by FWAG; see separate entry). The guide also discusses the multiple benefits of NFM for water quality, health and wellbeing, carbon storage, and biodiversity. Finally, it summarises setup and maintenance costs and suggests some funding sources. Case studies are provided.