Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting: The committee held its seventh annual meeting on June 1317, 2010 in conjunction with ASABEs Ninth International Drainage Symposium conducted jointly with CIGRs XVIIth Congress and CSABE in Quebec City, Canada. This international meeting venue provided committee members and guests an opportunity to attend a 2-day pre-symposium DRAINMOD workshop, to attend and interact with presenters of 77 oral papers and 20 posters by participants from 22 countries in 14 technical sessions, and to attend an all day post-conference tour of water management practices. The varied technical sessions covered many topics relevant to drainage water management. The committee held its business meeting on June 16, 2010, and was chaired by Kelly Nelson. During the business meeting, committee members were informed that the committee was renewed for five years, received a report from its Administrative Advisor, Ramesh Kanwar, discussed some future funding opportunities, gave brief station reports, and elected a new committee secretary, Xinhua Jia, from North Dakota.

Accomplishments - Individual Station Reports: IA (Iowa State University), submitted by Matt Helmers. Accomplishments: Research and extension efforts at Iowa State University relative to drainage design and management practices to improve water quality continue to center on nutrient export from tile drainage systems and nutrient management practices to minimize this export of nutrients, specifically nitrate-nitrogen. Work is also continuing that is evaluating drainage water management and cropping practice impacts on drainage volume and drainage water quality. Some new work is specifically examining impacts of various biomass production systems including continuous corn with stover removal and a diverse restored native prairie system. In addition, work is beginning on examining the impacts of optimal drainage design and integration with nutrient removal wetlands to reduce downstream nutrient transport and improve crop production. Water quality and water quantity are being monitoring from seven drainage water quality research sites. From field plot studies based on four years of data we found little impact of timing of nitrogen application on nitrate concentrations in drainage water in north-central Iowa. Based on this same study it was found that various land covers including continuous living mulch, winter cover crop, and perennial grass have some potential to reduce nitrate loss. In addition, the continuous living cover and perennial grass resulted in lower soil water storage during the spring and early summer of the year. This lower soil water storage would be expected to have positive impacts on drainage and surface water runoff. The drainage and crop production data specifically for the annual cover crop systems in a corn-soybean rotation have been used to test RZWQM. This has also included long-term predictions of the impact of including a winter rye cover crop in the corn-soybean system. Initial modeling has indicated a potential to reduce over drainage volume by about 10%. Work being led by Dr. Alok Bhandari is examining the potential for subsurface drainage bioreactors as treatment systems for nitrate from drainage water. This work is examining lab-scale, pilot-scale, and field-scale performance. Initial results indicate 40-60% nitrate-nitrogen concentration reduction at retention times of 4-8 hours. Extension work has focused on disseminating information relative to drainage water quality and economic design of drainage systems. This has included statewide, regional, and local programming events. In collaboration with colleagues at the University of Minnesota, the IA-MN Drainage Research Forum was held in November 2009 and was attended by approximately 80 stakeholders. In August 2009, an Iowa Drainage School was held near Crawfordsville, IA that focused on hands-on design of drainage systems. Approximately 25 individuals participated in this event. IA (ARS National Soil Tilth Lab, Ames), submitted by Dan Jaynes. Bioreactors and Cover Crops. Accomplishment. Nitrate in water removed from fields by subsurface drain (tile) systems is often at concentrations exceeding the 10 mg N L1 maximum contaminant level (MCL) set by the USEPA for drinking water and has been implicated in contributing to the hypoxia problem within the northern Gulf of Mexico. Because previous research shows that N fertilizer management alone is not sufficient for reducing NO3 concentrations in subsurface drainage below the MCL, additional approaches are need. In a continuing field study, we are comparing the NO3 losses in tile drainage from a conventional drainage system (CN) consisting of a free-flowing pipe installed 1.2 m below the soil surface to losses in tile drainage from two alternative drainage designs. The alternative treatments are a denitrification wall bioreactor (BR), where trenches excavated parallel to the tile and filled with woodchips serve as additional carbon sources to increase denitrification and a rye (Secale cereale L.) winter cover crop seeded each year near harvest and then chemically killed before planting the main crop the next following spring. Four replicate 30.5 x 42.7-m field plots were installed for each treatment in 1999 and a corn/soybean rotation initiated in 2000. Outcome. Over the past 9 yr the bioreactor and fall cover crop have reduced NO3 losses by 5 to 47 kg N yr-1. There has been no trend in the bioreactor efficacy indicating that the woodchips are still supporting denitrification at rates similar to when were first installed. The only year that the fall cover crop did not reduce nitrate losses was in 2001 when little cover crop was established in the fall of 2000 due to very dry weather after planting. Relatively lower removal rates in 2009 reflect overall lower nitrate losses from all plots including the conventionally drained plot. Denitrification in wood chip bioreactors at different water flows. Accomplishment. Subsurface drainage in agricultural watersheds exports a large quantity of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) and concentrations frequently exceed 10 mg L-1. A laboratory column study was conducted to investigate the ability of a wood chip biofilter to promote denitrification under mean water flow rates of 2.9, 6.6, 8.7 and 13.6 cm d-1 which are representative of flows entering subsurface drainage tiles. Columns were packed with wood chips and inoculated with a small amount of oxidized till and incubated at 10° C. Silicone sampling cells at the effluent ports were used for N2O sampling. 15Nitrate was added to dosing water at 50 mg L-1 and effluent was collected and analyzed for NO3-N, NH4-N, and dissolved organic carbon. Outcome. Mean NO3-N concentrations in the effluent were 0.0, 18.5, 24.2, and 35.3 mg L-1 for the flow rates 2.9, 6.6, 8.7 and 13.6 cm d-1, respectively, which correspond to 100, 64, 52, and 30% efficiency of removal. The NO3-N removal rates per g of wood increased with increasing flow rates. Denitrification was found to be the dominant NO3-N removal mechanism as immobilization of 15 NO3-N was negligible compared with the quantity of 15 NO3-N removed. Nitrous oxide production from the columns ranged from 0.003 to 0.028% of the N denitrified, indicating that complete denitrification generally occurred. MI (Michigan State University), submitted by Tim Harrigan. Evaluation of Leaching and Ponding of Viral Contaminants Following Land Application of Biosolids on Sandy-Loam Soil. By Kelvin Wong, Tim Harrigan and Irene Xagoraraki, Michigan State University Much of the most productive farmland in the Great Lakes region is artificially drained or characterized by a seasonal high water table. Much of the land available for the land application of biosolids is farm ground near residential areas. Biosolids is often applied on hay or grassland during the growing season or on corn ground before planting or after harvest in the fall. In this study, mesophilic anaerobic digested (MAD) biosolids were applied at 56,000 L/ha on a sandy-loam soil over large containment lysimeters seeded to perennial covers of orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) or planted annually to maize (Zea mays L.). Portable rainfall simulators were used to evaluate the movement of microbial contaminants under nearly saturated conditions. Specific objectives of this work were to: 1) evaluate the movement of indigenous viruses (somatic phage and adenovirus), and microbial tracer ( P-22 bacteriophage) from MAD biosolids following surface application over large containment lysimeters, and 2) evaluate the viral concentration of ponded surface water following simulated rainfall. Current Activities Biosolids (56,100 L/ha) were applied to the surface of the lysimeters during the growing season. Immediately before land application the biosolids were spiked with the P-22 bacteriophage and adenovirus to concentrations of 3.00×1011 1.25×1010 PFU/100ml, respectively. An anionic tracer (potassium chloride) was applied in 4L of water followed by 6.4 mm rainfall on the day before biosolids application. Simulated rainfall was applied on a daily basis until about 1.7 pore volumes of leachate was collected from each lysimeter. Leachate samples (3.9L) were drawn from the bottom of the lysimeters with a peristaltic pump every 0.1 pore volumes and analyzed for chloride concentration, P-22 and adenovirus. What We Have Learned There were 3.5 and 7.3 log reductions of somatic phage and adenovirus, respectively, in the leachate compared to the biosolids. The P-22 bacteriophage was found in leachate from three lysimeters (removal rates ranged from 1.81 to 3.2 log10/m). The peak breakthrough of the anionic tracer occurred at about 0.3 pore volume but the peak BTC of the P-22 varied from <0.1 to 0.7 pore volumes. The early and variable time to peak breakthrough of anionic and microbial tracers indicated preferential flow paths, presumably from soil cracks, root channels, worm holes or other natural phenomena. The concentration of microbial contaminants collected in the ponded surface water ranged from 1 to 10% of the initial concentration in the applied biosolids. Microbial pollution from runoff following significant rainfall events is likely when biosolids remain on the soil surface. MN (University of Minnesota), submitted by Jeff Strock. Research Soil and water management and conservation with emphasis on drainage water management continues to be conducted at the University of Minnesota Southwest Research and Outreach Center (SWROC) near Lamberton, MN. Our research goal is to provide field-based research information and integrated soil and water management solutions to assist agricultural and environmental stakeholders in supporting sustainable agricultural production and improving water quality. Results from the on-farm, field-scale, research project comparing controlled and conventional drainage showed that controlled drainage reduced drain outflow by 68%, nitrogen loss by 64%, and phosphorus loss by 77% compared to conventional drainage. Controlled drainage resulted in a 10% yield increase over conventional free drainage in 2009. This was the first reported yield increase at this site after observing no difference between treatments for three years. Nutrient retention basins monitoring included pairs of surface-flow, horizontal-flow, and vertical-flow basins. The entire complex of basins is providing multiple ecosystem services. Regulation functions and related services include: water supply regulation, soil retention, nutrient cycling, and pollination. The site has so far created water storage and apparent soil and nutrient retention/cycling. Various forbes and grasses at the site also provide natural pollination. Habitat functions and related services include: living space for plants and animals and breeding and nursery areas. This spring various frogs, toads, shorebirds, and waterfowl have used the site. There have been several nesting pairs of waterfowl at the site. Production functions and related services include: production of raw materials in the form of native grasses. Although there are no plans at this time to harvest and use these raw materials the capacity exists. Information functions and related services include: aesthetic, recreational, scientific and educational information. Anyone who has visited the site can attest to the aesthetic nature of the site. The complex also has intrinsic value as a research and demonstration site. Extension/Outreach Education Six presentations were given to stakeholder groups during the past year. A total of 371 people participated in the events. " University of Minnesota SWROC 50th Anniversary  19 January, 2009. Lamberton, MN. Number of participants: 125. " RCRCA and Area II Legislative Update and Year-in-Review  12 December, 2009. Wabasso, MN. Number of participants: 55. " Conservation Drainage Focus Group  14 January, 2010. Montevideo, MN. Number of participants: 8. " Conservation Drainage Focus Group  21 January, 2010. Montevideo, MN. Number of participants: 6. " Drainage Water Management: Benefits, Conflicts, and Resolutions. 18 March, 2010. Hayti, SD. Number of participants: 130. " Drainage Water Management to meet Agronomic and Environmental Goals. 17 June, 2010. Harrow, ON, Canada. Number of participants: 14. " Improving Teacher Quality Workshop. 29 June, 2010. Lamberton, MN. Number of participants: 33. MO (University of Missouri), submitted by Kelly Nelson. Managed drainage has been utilized as a best management system to reduce NO3-N loss through subsurface drain tiles. Regulated water flow through the winter months has reduced NO3-N loading of streams up to 75%. Field research was initiated on claypan and silty clay soils to evaluate the impacts of managed drainage systems for crop and livestock production from 2009 to 2012. Enhanced efficiency fertilizers may further reduce NO3-N loss through subsurface drainage systems that utilize managed drainage for corn production. The hypothesis of this research is that managed drainage and enhanced efficiency fertilizer (polymer-coated urea) will synergistically increase corn yields and reduce NO3-N loss, and managed drainage will reduce NO3-N loss from an intensive annual forage production system. This research will 1) determine the effects of managed drainage systems and enhanced efficiency nitrogen fertilizer (polymer-coated urea) on corn production, nitrogen use efficiency, and nitrogen loss through the drainage system; and 2) evaluate the effects of managed drainage on forage production, nitrogen use efficiency, and non-point source nitrogen loss through the drainage system. There have been two sites selected to conduct experiments evaluating managed drainage for corn production referred to as the Greenley and Bee Ridge sites, and one for forage production for cattle (Bos taurus) referred to as the Forage site. The MUDS (MU Drainage and Subirrigation) research site was maintained including research on fungicide treatments in soybean and corn hybrids. Some of the key findings to date from this research include: 1) drainage only increased average corn grain yields up to 20%, while DSI has increased average yields up to 48% when compared with non-drained, non-irrigated soil planted on the same day from 2004 to 2009; 2) overhead irrigation increased grain yield 7% compared to DSI corn with 20 ft laterals from 2004 to 2009, however, applied water was on average 4 times greater for overhead irrigated corn compared with DSI corn on a 20 ft drain tile spacing from 2004 to 2007; 3) corn and soybean planting date was delayed an average of 3 days for the non-drained control when compared with drained soils from 2002 to 2009; 4) delay-planted soybean yield has been 2 bu/a less than soybean planted at the time DO treatments were planted, while corn grain yield was 14 bu/a greater with a delayed planting date; and 5) soybean grain yield with DO has averaged up to 23% greater than the non-drained delayed planting controls; 6) similarly, DSI had soybean grain yields up to 25% greater than the non-drained delayed planting controls. NY (Cornell University), submitted by Larry Geohring. Accomplishments. Research was done on several farms in Central New York to investigate the mobility and transport of E. coli as dairy manure is collected and then land applied to tile drained fields. The E. coli isolates were collected at three distinct locations on each farm: (i) cow housing, (ii) calf housing, and (iii) field drain (tile) effluent, and the isolates were analyzed for the cell surface components cellulose and curli, traits that have been linked to increased environmental survival and transport through soil. The results showed a high amount of diversity amongst E. coli isolates at each spatial location, and the isolates collected from cow housing and calf housing displayed highly variable curli and cellulose-producing community profiles from one sampling week to another. However, the isolates collected from the drain tile effluent consistently displayed similar curli and cellulose production communities over all sampling dates suggesting that the subsurface soil and presence of drain tiles tend to select for a certain subset of E. coli strains, perhaps better adapted for environmental survival and/or transport. Not all of the E. coli strains found in the tile effluent were sourced from the cow or calf housing, which also indicates that other environmental sources of bacteria can contaminate tile drain effluent. Controlled drainage is being investigated as a best management practice to reduce the impact of liquid manure applications to tile drained fields, especially where preferential transport may contaminate the drain discharge. Several candidate field sites were selected on cooperating farms in New York, and nine drainage control (Agri Drain) inline structures were installed. Preliminary sampling is now underway. In the laboratory, replicated soil columns were constructed to simulate different macropore sizes, and leaching experiments were conducted using liquid manure with different solids density. These combined field and laboratory experiments will examine if controlled drainage can minimize impacts from manure contaminated tile effluent, and better define the relationship between manure liquidity and potential leaching through various soils. A training session on Soil Hydrology and Drainage and Irrigation Principles was organized and presented at the annual Northeast Certified Crop Advisors Conference, and other extension activity included responding to tile drainage discharge water quality violations, whereby the drainage discharge was discolored from preceding manure applications. This resulted in making several presentations at farmer meetings and to the Agricultural Environmental Management Certification Subcommittee, a joint committee of the New York State Departments of Agriculture and Markets and Environmental Conservation, which addresses policy implications of CAFOs and provides training and certification of CNMPs (Comprehensive Nutrient Management Planners).

Reported Publications: Journal Publications: Christianson, L., A. Castelló, R. Christianson, A. Bhandari, and M. J. Helmers. Hydraulic property determination of denitrifying bacteria fill media. Accepted May 2010 as a Technical Note to Applied Engineering in Agriculture. Christianson, L., A. Bhandari, and M. J. Helmers. Pilot-scale evaluation of denitrification drainage bioreactors: Reactor geometry and performance. Submitted February 3, 2010 to Journal of Environmental Engineering. Christianson, L. A. Bhandari, and M. J. Helmers. 2009. Emerging technology: Denitrification bioreactors for nitrate reduction in agricultural waters. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 64:139A-141A. Lowery, B., C. Cox, D. Lemke, P. Nowak, K. Olson, and J. Strock. 2009. The 2008 Midwest flooding impact on soil erosion and water quality: implications for soil erosion control practices. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 64:166A. Luo, W. G.R. Sands, M. Youssef, J.S. Strock, I. Song, and D. Canelon. 2010. Modeling the impact of alternative drainage practices in the northern corn belt with Drainmod-NII. Ag. Water Mgmt. 97:389-398. Moorman, Thomas B., Parkin, Timothy B., Kaspar, Thomas C., Jaynes, Dan B. 2010. Denitrification activity, wood loss, and N2O emissions over 9 years from a wood chip bioreactor. Ecological Eng. xxx: xxx-xxx. doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2010.03.012. Nelson, K.A., S.M. Paniagua, and P.P. Motavalli. 2009. Effect of polymer coated urea, irrigation, and drainage on nitrogen utilization and yield of corn in a claypan soil. Agron. J. 101:681-687. Qi, Z. and M. J. Helmers Converting Permittivity measured by PR2 capacitance probe into soil moisture for Des Moines Lobe soils in Iowa. Accepted to Soil Use and Management Dec. 6, 2009. Qi, Z. and M. J. Helmers. 2009. Soil water dynamics under winter rye cover crop in central Iowa. Vadose Zone Journal 9(1): 53-60. Riley, K. D., M. J. Helmers, P A. Lawlor, and R. Singh. 2009. Water balance investigation of controlled drainage in non-weighing lysimeters. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 25(4): 507-514. Schipper, Louis A., Robertson, Will D., Gold, Arthur J., Jaynes, Dan B., Cameron, Stewart C. 2010. Denitrifying bioreactors  An approach for reducing nitrate loads to receiving waters. Ecological Eng. xxx: xxxxxx. doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2010.04.008. Conference Proceedings, Professional Society Papers, or Other Extension and Non-refereed Publications: Christianson, L., A. Bhandari, M. J. Helmers, and M. St. Clair. 2009. Denitrifying bioreactors for treatment of tile drainage. In: Proceedings of the EWRI Congress, ASCE. [Oral Presentation - Christianson] Christianson, L. A. Bhandari, and M. J. Helmers. 2009. Woodchip bioreactors: A new nitrate reduction option. Getting into Soil & Water, Iowa Water Center. Vol. 1, pg 13. Christianson, R.*, M. J. Helmers, P. Lawlor, and D. Lemke. 2009. Impact of fertilizer timing on drainage nitrate levels. ASABE Meeting Paper No. 09-6246. St. Joseph, MI: ASABE. [Oral Presentation  Christianson] Helmers, M. J., D. Lemke, W. Crumpton, and S. Melvin. 2009. Integrated drainage-wetland landscape systems: A strategy to provide environmental and crop production benefits. Getting into Soil & Water, Iowa Water Center. Vol. 1, pg 4. Helmers, M. J., S. Melvin, and D. Lemke. 2009. Drainage main rehabilitation in Iowa. In: Proceedings of the EWRI Congress, ASCE. [Oral Presentation - Helmers] Jaynes, Dan. 2009. Crop yield and nitrate losses from sidedressing N at canopy closure. [abstract]. ASA-CSSA-SSSA. http://a-c-s.confex.com/crops/2009am/webprogram/Session6919.html#top Jaynes, Dan B., Thorp, Kelly R., James, David E. 2010. Potential water quality impact of drainage water management in the Midwest USA. Proceedings of ASABE's 9th International Drainage Symposium. June 13-17, 2010, Quebec City, Canada. Paper #84. Melkonian, J., L.D. Geohring, H.M. van Es, P.E. Wright, T.S. Steenhuis, and C. Graham. 2010. Subsurface drainage nitrogen discharges following manure application: Measurements and model analyses. Proceedings of ASABE's 9th International Drainage Symposium. June 13-17, 2010, Quebec City, Canada. Paper #201. Nelson, K., C. Meinhardt, and R. Smoot. 2009. Managed Drainage System for Crop Production. Greenley Memorial Research Center Field Day Report. pp. 4-6. Nelson, K., C. Meinhardt, and R. Smoot. 2009. MU Drainage and Subirrigation (MUDS) Research Update. Greenley Memorial Research Center Field Day Report. pp. 7-19. Salvucci, A.E., M. Elton, J.D. Siler, W. Zhang, B.K. Richards, L.D. Geohring, L.D. Warnick, A.G. Hay, and T.S. Steenhuis. 2010. The role of curli and cellulose in the transport and survival of Escherichia coli on a Central New York dairy farm. Proceedings of ASABE's 9th International Drainage Symposium. June 13-17, 2010, Quebec City, Canada. Paper #161.