Various aspects of farmland drainage will be the focus of a daylong workshop March 3 at the Iowa Bioprocess Training Center in Eddyville. The program is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.

“This workshop is being offered due to the increased interest in this topic the past year,” says Kapil Arora, field agricultural engineer with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

The morning session will focus on subsurface-drainage design concepts, nutrient cycling in soils and long-term benefits of tiling. The afternoon session will cover economics, drainage issues in southeast Iowa, bioreactors, saturated buffers, and management of drainage water quality with controlled drainage and wetlands. Legal issues related to tiling and Iowa drainage laws will also be covered.

Also, attendees will learn information essential to designing and planning a new drainage system or retrofitting an existing system while learning about environmental impacts and new technologies that may be useful in minimizing negative environmental impacts.

ISU Extension speakers include Kapil Arora and Greg Brenneman, field ag engineers; Charles Brown, farm management specialist; Matt Helmers, professor and ISU Extension engineer; Mike Castellano, associate professor in agronomy; and John Baker, an attorney with Iowa Concern.

Chris Hay from the Iowa Soybean Association is also on the agenda to talk about drainage water quality and managed drainage.

Industry representatives on hand
ISU Extension, Iowa Farm Bureau of Wapello and Mahaska counties, various industry partners, and the Iowa Soybean Association are sponsoring the program. Industry representatives will also be on hand to answer your questions and explain their farmland drainage products and services. Companies exhibiting will include Prinsco, Ecosystems Services Exchange, Kahn Tile Supply, Midwest Plastic Products and Agri Drain, and they will be available during the workshop to answer any questions. The workshop qualifies for Certified Crop Advisor credits, which have been applied for.

Registration for the workshop is $40 before Feb. 28; after that date the fee is $60. Workshop materials, morning refreshments and lunch are included in the fee.

Participants must preregister by sending in a registration form along with payment to ISU Extension Mahaska County Office. Registrations are limited to first 80 participants. Walk-in registrations will only be accepted if space is available.

For more information, call ISU Extension in Mahaska County at 641-673-5841 or email [email protected].

Source: Iowa State University