9/9/98

Contacts:
Stewart Melvin, Agricultural Engineer, ISU, (515) 294-1434
Jim Baker, Agricultural Engineer, ISU, (515) 294-4205
Dean Lemke, Agricultural Engineer, IDALS (515) 281-3963
Karen Bolluyt, Agriculture Information, (515) 294-3701

AG DRAINAGE WELL FIELD DAY SET FOR SEPTEMBER 17

AMES -- New nitrogen application techniques have the potential to reduce nitrate leaching losses by up to 30 percent, according to preliminary research results to be presented at a Sept. 17 field day in Pocahontas County.

Researchers from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) and Iowa State University (ISU) will present results from studies at the Agricultural Drainage Well Research and Demonstration Project site near Gilmore City.

The event will be held from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. To reach the site, take Iowa Highway 3 three miles west from County Road P19 in Gilmore City, then follow the county gravel road north one mile. Signs will be posted along Highway 3 to direct people to the location.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Dale Cochran will present an overview of project, which was authorized by Iowa's 1987 Groundwater Protection Act. Experts from ISU and IDALS will release results of 1994-97 water-quality studies and discuss ways to reduce or eliminate the potential for groundwater contamination through drainage wells. Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officials will discuss regulatory issues related to drainage wells.

"There are about 300 drainage wells, mostly in north-central Iowa, that have provided drainage outlets and made farming possible. However, drainage wells can create groundwater concerns because they carry excess water and possibly chemicals directly into underground aquifers. The goal of this project is to examine and demonstrate alternatives that make it possible for farmers to minimize the potential of groundwater contamination through the wells," said Dean Lemke, project director for IDALS.

Staff from ISU and IDALS are conducting the research on 75 plots at a farm leased to ISU by the Pocahontas County Soil and Water Conservation District. ISU agricultural engineer Stewart Melvin will review weather conditions and drainage characteristics of the area. Jim Baker, also an ISU agricultural engineer, will discuss new nitrogen application methods and the effects of nitrogen and pesticide applications on drainage water quality. ISU botanist Bill Crumpton will describe the use of constructed wetlands to improve the quality of water draining to the wells.

Lemke will discuss options for producers who choose to close their wells, including efforts to provide alternative drainage outlets in Pocahontas and Wright counties.

A DNR staff member will discuss proposed rules for chemical management and well permits, and staff from ISU and the DNR will answer questions about pesticide and nitrogen treatments applied to the research plots and about crop production.

"We always emphasize that this research focuses on ag drainage wells, but the results can be applied to other areas in Iowa and the Corn Belt where subsurface drainage is used," Baker said.

"Touring the plots will give producers a good chance to see the management practices that we're using, and extension crop specialists will be on hand to answer questions about local crop conditions and problems," Melvin added.

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