Drainage Water Management Options And Strategies To Improve Water Quality

Alex Echolsechols@conrod.com

703/660‐2366

Key Functions Altered Nitrogen Discharge

1. Increase Use of Synthetic Nitrogen

2. Shift From Forage and Small Grains to Large Grain Production

3. Altered Hydrology to Move Water Off Landscape Very Efficiently

Nitrogen Impaired Waters

Agricultural Drainage

(Jaynes and James 2008)

sMoveWater Of

How Water Moves Off Ag Lands

What Is Drainage Water Management?A series of practices that captures, collects or processes nutrients discharged from agricultural lands.

1. Drainage Water Management2. Saturated Buffers3. Bio Reactors4. Nutrient Treatment Wetlands5. Emerging Technologies

– Phosphorous Filters– Sub Surface Irrigation– Swarm Technology

Installation of Modern Drainage 

Drainage Water Management

Seasonal Schedule

Winter Spring

Summer Fall

Fully Instrumented/Automated

ControlMeasureReport

Bio Reactor

Saturated Buffer

Top View

Side View

Phosphorus Filter

Swarm IntelligenceLinking multiple (potentially thousands) of structures to communicate and maximize desired outcomes.For example, water qualityflood reduction, agronomicproduction.Benefits are distributedthroughout the watershed.

Causes of Loss for Iowa Corn, 1948-2010

Causes of Loss for Iowa Soy, 1955-2010

Charts courtesy of Chad Hart, Managing Risk in Agriculture, Iowa State University, June 2013

Causes of Crop Loss

So What?

On Farm Benefits

1. DWM Increase Ag Production (5% ‐ 10%)2. DWM Decrease Nutrient Input (15%?)3. DWM Reduce Risk (25%?)4. DWM Reduce Water Input Needs (%?)5. Subsurface Irrigation Reduce Risk (66%)6. Bioreactor, Saturated Buffers, Phosphorous 

Filters, Etc.  Zero On Farm Benefits

So What #2?

Off Farm Benefits Of DWM1. Each practice performance highly reliable2. Each practice performance highly 

quantifiable3. Each practice performance easily 3rd

party certified4. Each practice capital investment that will 

operate for years5. Cost – out perform other nutrient 

strategies

Ecosystem Service Trading

Direct Costs (Excludes On Farm Benefits)Retrofit DWM 0.50 – 0.70/lbNNew DWM 0.37 ‐ 3.01/lbN* (*includes new tile)BioReactor 1.08 – 33.37/lbNWetland 2.96 – 11.78/lbNSaturated Buffers 0.99/lbNCover Crops 5.02‐ 64.90/lbN

Municipal WastewaterMunicipal Stormwater

100.00 – 1000.00/lbN90.0 – 944.0/lbN

DWM assumes 20 year life cycleBioreactors assumes 20 year life cycleSaturated Buffers assumes 20 year life cycleWetland Assumes 25 year life cycleCover Crops assumes annual cycle

Conclusions1. No Magic Bullet ‐ Need a Systems Approach2. Need to recognize the variability of agriculture3. Practices that produce significant on site benefits require less 

outside support4. Practices that are…

a. easily quantified environmental performanceb. highly reliablec. easily third party certifiedd. have clear property rights…are more readily accepted to ecosystem service markets

5. We can no longer rely on “Farm Bill” incentives alone but must find additional funding sources

6. DWM practices are among the most attractiveconservation management actions to enter intoecosystem service markets

When land does well for its owner, and the owner does well by his land;

When both end up better by reason of their partnership, we have conservation.

When one or the other grows poorer, we do not.

- Aldo LeopoldThe Farmer as Conservationist

1939

Drainage Water Management Options And Strategies To Improve Water Quality

Alex Echolsechols@conrod.com

703/660‐2366

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