Dairy Farmers In Race For Water As Countryside Bears The Brunt
UK - The floods that have swamped Britain are likely to cost the country £3 billion in lost farm produce and reduced earnings from tourism, according the economic analysis.
26 July 2007
1 minute read
This figure is on top of the £3 billion costs estimated by the insurance industry, which is dealing with claims for thousands of households and business premises.
It is significantly lower than the £8 billion lost as a result of the foot-and-mouth outbreak six years ago, but for individuals the catastrophe will be no less marked.
Besides the misery caused for thousands by the widespread lack of running water, there is also a crisis for livestock and pets.
Many farmers were desperately attempting to find clean water for dairy cattle last night, and owners of livery stables and equestrian centres also need water for their horses.
The RSPCA said that it knew of 29,000 dairy cattle on 300 farms in Gloucestershire which needed water.
Neil Robinson, 36, who has 340 cattle on his farm at Forthampton, near Tewkesbury, has had no clean water since Saturday and has had to pump water out of two wells.
He is also having to dump about 4,500 litres of milk a day because vehicles cannot reach the farm to make collections.
