'Farming the Flood' shows Dartmoor farmers adapting to nature
Source: gov.uk (2025-06-04)

Farmers are turning flood challenges into environmental opportunities in this new documentary.

- ‘Farming the Flood’ showcases farmers using nature-based techniques to combat flooding, created in partnership with the Dartmoor Headwaters Project.
- The film demonstrates the role farmers can play in increasing resilience to flooding whilst restoring biodiversity, while aligning with their business interests.
‘Farming The Flood’, which will be released live to the public via YouTube on June 5, follows local British farmers in Dartmoor implementing natural flood management techniques to protect communities while enhancing biodiversity.

Made by South West-based filmmaker Harrison Wood and Dartmoor farmer Nick Viney of Leewood Studios, the film tells the stories of farmers who are actively shaping sustainable land management across the UK.

The film has been jointly funded in partnership with Dartmoor Headwaters Project and Dartmoor National Park Authority.

Filmmakers Harrison Wood and Nick Viney

The Dartmoor Headwaters Project is a partnership of the Environment Agency, Dartmoor National Park authority and Devon County council. The Dartmoor Headwaters Project offers farmers and landowners in the Okement, Bovey, Dean Burn, Mardle, Erme, Yealm, Colleybrook, and Blackbrook catchments support to design, fund and deliver nature-based solutions.

Pamela Woods of Dartmoor National Park said:

The effects of flooding can be devastating, causing significant damage to homes, businesses, roads and nature. By 2070 we are predicted to experience 30% more rainfall, resulting in 41% higher river flows.

The film conveys complex issues in a positive way while showing how support and funding can help people deliver nature and climate-based solutions.

It is wonderful to see the vital role moorland farmers play in mitigating the risks of flooding. We hope people enjoy and learn from ‘Farming the Flood’.

Dartmoor, where the uplands play a crucial role in flood mitigation, from reintroducing wetlands to grazing that restores ecosystems while supporting farms. Photo: Harrison Wood

Tom Dauben, flood and coastal risk management senior advisor at the Environment Agency, said:

Whilst Dartmoor’s rivers and farms are the subject of this film, it highlights the really important role famers across the country can play to increase resilience of the environment and communities to the threats of the climate and biodiversity crisis.

Every field has a part to play in tackling these issues, and it’s great to showcase some of the work being done locally by farmers, landowners and managers in the film.

The documentary explores the crucial role uplands can play in flood mitigation, showcasing practical solutions from reintroducing wetlands and floodplain meadows to innovative grazing techniques that restore ecosystems while maintaining productive farms.

These techniques slow water flow, reduce downstream flooding, and enhance carbon capture and storage – delivering multiple benefits for communities, wildlife and farmers themselves, including making river catchments resilient to climate change pressures such as increased flood risk and heightened risk of drought.

Nick Viney interviewing water ecosystem and wetland expert, Professor Edward Maltby. Photo: Harrison Wood

Harrison Wood, filmmaker, said:

The farmers featured in this film aren’t waiting for top-down solutions – they’re acting now.

By working with nature rather than against it, they’re demonstrating how farming can be a key player in tackling environmental challenges.

Co-director Nick Viney, a landscape restoration specialist with decades of experience in nature recovery, provided expert context for these pioneering approaches throughout the film.

‘Farming The Flood’ highlights that many of these initiatives are accessible through government and private grants, making them available to farmers of all backgrounds and scales.

To learn more about the Headwaters Project, please visit Dartmoor Headwaters Natural Flood Management Project (https://www.dartmoor.gov.uk/wildlife-and-heritage/our-conservation-work/dartmoor-headwaters-project) or contact xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx).