why do producers continue to add more drainage (increase intensity)?

Why do producers continue to add more drainage (increase intensity)?

Goals:Uniform field conditions for timely planting and harvesting

Higher crop yields

Risk reduction

Modern Drainage Technology

WE HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY TO DRAIN EFFECTIVELY

Do we have the technology we need to do effective drainage

water management?

Is this technology sufficient?

What is the goal Production AND Environmental Benefits –

this impacts the scale (field vs landscape) Drain only as much as needed Get rid of the water OR keep it Storage and re-use Water treatment / filtration Flood attenuation Watershed planning Managing surface drainage water

Some potentially useful emerging technologies

Lidar – water management design applications

RTK-GPS – controlled traffic Bioreactors Saturated buffers Treatment wetlands Two-stage ditches Subirrigation Crop genetics – improved stress tolerance

Needed technologies Telemetry for control Subsurface drainage system design

software that optimizes water management zones

Control ‘valves’ for surface inlets Simple accurate flow measurement –

critical for nutrient trading verification

No silver bullet Suites of practices are critical

Controlled traffic No till Cover crops 4 R