Hydrologic Impacts of Agriculutral Drainage in the Upper Midwest, USA.

Hydrologic impacts of Alterations of land use and management for agriculture have been implicated in surface and groundwater quality and quantity concerns. What remains poorly understood, however, is the influence of agricultural management practices on field and landscape-scale water budgets. The overall objective of this research is to quantify how agricultural drainage practices impact water budgets of corn production systems. The field research was conducted at three sites which extend along an east-west precipitation gradient from central Minnesota (MN) to eastern South Dakota (SD). Average annual precipitation for the study sites ranges from approximately 584 mm in eastern SD to over 762 mm for south-central MN. Direct and indirect measurements of the soil water balance were measured along with other metrics (e.g. root length density, leaf area index). Water balance components will be compared and contrasted. Results of this research will provide important information that will allow farmers, land managers and water management system designers to design water management infrastructure in a way that is both effective for production and environmentally responsible.