Illinois Success Story

Water Quality Improvements
with Drainage Management

By: Jill Creamean, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist
Date: May 2003

Christian County landowner Sally Briney and producer Steve Bails are looking to the Drainage Management system on Briney’s 100 acres of cropland to reduce nitrates leaving the fields in tile water and also to help mitigate the impact of dry summer growing seasons on yields. The Drainage Management system was installed with financial assistance from NRCS’s Tile Drainage Management Demonstration Project and cost share from the Sangamon and Christian County Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD).

The system includes a stop log water control structure that allows control over how much water leaves the field and when. The producer allows maximum drainage to get equipment on the fields for planting, but releases tile water more slowly during the winter for water quality benefits and during the growing season to keep needed water and nutrients available for plant growth.

The system enhances agricultural operations, but also provides big picture water quality benefits. With reduced tile discharge, smaller quantities of nitrates enter streams and rivers. Instead, nitrates are kept in the fields and available to crops. Over time, producers who use Drainage Management could potentially find the need for smaller quantities of applied fertilizers.

The system was installed in 2000. NRCS Water Quality Specialist Don Pitts, who has worked with drainage and water management issues since the 80’s, worked closely with Briney to provide concept, installation, and management guidelines for maximum economic and environmental benefits. Other NRCS Technical Specialists also provided soil survey information, topographic maps, and soil borings, determinations, and state-of-the-art soil testing to tailor the project to the site-specific needs of the property.

"In addition to the potential economic benefits of increased yields, Drainage Management can also result in a 40% reduction of nitrates leaving the field and entering surface water bodies," said Pitts.

To date, NRCS has provided technical and financial assistance for installation of 37 Drainage Management test sites in central Illinois.

As Drainage Management becomes more widely adopted, water quality improvements will be realized on both a local and regional basis. "Nitrates have raised concerns over water quality in the Illinois River Watershed, the Mississippi River system, and the Gulf of Mexico," said Pitts. "Improving our subsurface drainage systems in the Midwest is our best opportunity to reduce nitrate pollution in our streams, rivers, and the Gulf."