Limiting impact of drought: Study into capturing drain water

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Researchers at Purdue’s Agronomy Center for Research and Education are addressing an important issue to farmers everywhere — drought tolerance.

The researchers behind the Drainage Water Recycling project at ACRE work to capture drainage water to prevent downstream flow and redirect it back to fields during drier conditions later in the growing season.

Water and fertilizers are placed precisely as needed through drip irrigation.

“By storing this drainage water, we estimate an overall reduction of about 30% to 40% in the nitrate load going downstream,” said Laura Bowling, incoming department head of agronomy at Purdue.

Shaun Casteel, professor of agronomy, noted that soybean production has increased 4 to 6 bushels since the project’s inception.

In A Nutshell

“Overall, our efforts are yielding benefits in terms of improved crop yields, nitrogen use efficiency and water quality, which in turn supports additional ecosystem services like wildlife habitat,” Bowling summarized.

As the team continues refining their system, they encourage farmers to explore existing wet areas on their land for potential water storage and management solutions.

“Maybe it’s just a field that floods a lot, think about those existing wet spots for water storage,” Bowling said.

“This may only provide irrigation for relatively small areas, but it could provide a buffer against drought risk or be useful for specialty crops.

“Even if you’re not going to do this type of system, we need to look holistically across the land in terms of our crop and water management to decrease downstream impacts, as well as benefit the farm itself.”