Butterfly protected in Norfolk Broads by withdrawal of water abstraction licences

The swallowtail butterfly's Broad habitat is drying out due to water abstraction

Two dozen licences allowing farmers to extract water from rivers and other natural sources are being withdrawn to protect rare flora and fauna.

The move comes after the owners of Catfield Fen in the Norfolk Broads proved habitats had been affected by water extraction.

Catfield Fen and nearby Sutton Fen have 90% of the UK populations of rare fen orchids and swallowtail butterflies.

The National Farmers Union said it would be monitoring the situation.

Environment Agency (EA) licences allow water companies and farmers to take water from rivers, lakes and groundwater aquifers.

Groundwater had been abstracted by farmers next to Catfield Fen near Ludham and Sutton Fen in the Ant Valley since 1986 to irrigate potatoes and salad crops.

But Catfield Fen owners Tim and Geli Harris and the RSPB claimed that since the 1990s, both fens have been drying out as a result.

In 2016, a neighbouring farmer lost a Planning Inspectorate appeal contesting the Environment Agency's decision not to renew water abstraction licences from the nearby aquifer.

"The problem with abstraction is that it has reduced the flow of alkaline water to the fen and that's meant that [acid] rainwater has managed to penetrate deeper," said Mr Harris.

"This has caused plants such as sphagnum moss, an acid-loving plant, to thrive - crowding-out the rare fen orchid and milk parsley which provides food for swallowtail butterfly caterpillars."

Catfield and Sutton Fen are home to the rare fen orchid

Since then, the EA has been considering various options for licensed water abstraction on important Broads wildlife habitats which could mean more businesses "retaining access to water, but at a reduced quantity".

The Agency said it would be "seeking the views of the abstraction community before making any final decisions".

The licences include those held by Anglian Water Services within the Ant catchment to abstract water for public supply.