Agricultural drainage is becoming increasingly important due to the critical role it plays for Iowa's emerging bio-economy. Drainage systems that are properly designed and operating are essential to achieving excellent agricultural production capability.

The Iowa Drainage School is being offered to address these issues on Aug. 25-27 at the Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm near Crawfordsville in southeast Iowa. "People looking to install a new drainage system or retrofit an existing system will want to attend this school," says Matt Helmers, Iowa State University Extension ag engineer. "The workshop will focus on drainage design, economics of drainage, water management and legal issues related to drainage."

A number of timely topics related to drainage

The intent of the Iowa Drainage School is to provide training about:

Drainage contractors, landowners, professional engineers and consultants, NRCS professionals, county administrators, and others who are involved in making drainage design decisions within their respective businesses and organizations are invited to attend.

This is a three-day school with each day including a combination of hands-on training, lecture and discussion, and problem solving using examples. By attending this school, participants will be able to plan and layout subsurface drainage systems and work out project costs.

Registration fees are $275 per person if registered by midnight, Aug. 15. Registration received after Aug. 15 is $325 per person. Class size is limited to 40 participants and pre-registration is required. Registration fees include meals indicated on the agenda, refreshments and handouts. Additional information, a detailed agenda and online registration are available at www.aep.iastate.edu/ids.