Ag group heads to Minnesota Capitol to defend farm drainage systems
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Most crops grown in Minnesota don’t do well under excessively wet conditions. That’s especially true with heavy clay soils that don’t drain well.
Many farmers install underground drainage pipes, also called tile, to drain excess water. It allows for earlier planting and can improve plant health.
"We're able to get more productive days in the field. We've been able to lengthen our cropping season a little longer because we can get started earlier in the well-drained ground that warms up in the spring,” said Wesley Beck, president of the Minnesota Corn Growers Association.
However, there are some unintended consequences of drainage.
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"Farmers apply fertilizer to their fields, and that can cause nitrate pollution in the receiving waters, and the drainage systems accelerate that pollution issue,” said Leigh Currie, the legal officer for the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy.
Most of the nitrate pollution in Minnesota’s waterways comes from agriculture. Currie said drainage systems play a big role.
Nitrate, which is used in fertilizers, can make its way into drinking water and can be harmful to human health. And nitrate pollution can promote algal blooms, harming fish and other aquatic life.
While nitrates do filter through the tile, the pipes also prevent the runoff of surface contaminants such as phosphorus and sediment. That’s according to Gary Sands, a professor at the University of Minnesota who specializes in water management and water quality.
“You're reducing surface runoff,” Sands said. “You’re reducing erosion, reducing the loss of soil, oftentimes you're improving soil quality by aerating the soil profile, and so the biological activity can be more robust in that soil.”
But even if drain tile might reduce erosion on the farm field, it can contribute to erosion elsewhere. Drain tiles can rapidly channel water into streams and rivers, which Currie said can have negative consequences for riverbanks.
“The actual flow of water in the Minnesota River, for example, has increased dramatically over the years, and that accelerates erosion,” she said. “It can actually threaten homes and roads and cause all sorts of infrastructure damage.”
Currently, farmers don’t need permits for drainage on private land if it doesn’t impact protected waterways or wetlands. If it does, farmers may need a permit from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources or other government bodies.
Currie wants yet more safeguards. Last fall, her group and others petitioned the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to create a new regulatory framework for drainage projects.
"The rivers and tributaries that are receiving discharge from these drainage systems would have an extra layer of protection from these unintended consequences,” she said.
The agency denied the request, saying the legislature hadn't given it authority. But that didn’t end the debate. Both the corn and soybean growers' associations have asked courts to clarify who can regulate farm drainage.
For now, amidst a lack of regulatory clarity, the Corn Growers Association will make its case in front of state lawmakers at the Capitol Tuesday.
