Explore Advanced Water Management Strategies with the CANCID Webinar Series!
Join us for the upcoming session, Modeling of Controlled Drainage, presented by the Canadian Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (CANCID). This webinar will delve into innovative techniques for optimizing water resource management in agricultural systems.
DATE: FEBRUARY 12, 2025
TIME: 12:00 PM MOUNTAIN
This session will feature Dr. Steve Frey from Aquanty, who will provide insights into the modeling of tile drainage and controlled drainage systems, emphasizing practical approaches to improving water management in the face of climate challenges.
Short Biography:
Steve completed his PhD in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Waterloo in 2011, where he studied tile drainage influences on water quantity and quality using model and field-based methods. He then completed post-doctoral research as a visiting research fellow at AAFC in Ottawa, where he continued to apply advanced numerical models towards the study of tile drainage influences on field scale and watershed scale hydrology. He has authored or coauthored an array of peer reviewed scientific manuscripts on the topic of tile drainage and water quantity and quality in agricultural watersheds.
Abstract:
Tile drainage management is considered a beneficial management practice (BMP) for reducing nutrient loads in surface water. Research has shown that controlling tile discharge via control structures with adjustable stop gates can be very effective for reducing tile discharge volume, and that on an annualized basis there is often a reduction in nutrient losses that is proportional to the reduction in discharge. However, the influence of controlled drainage on groundwater resources is rarely considered. In this presentation we will discuss tile drainage experiments that were conducted in Ontario, Canada, that were designed to assess the influence of drainage management on the movement of nutrients and chemical tracers to surface water and groundwater under controlled (CD) and free drainage (FD) tile management. We will also present results from 2-dimensional dual-permeability modeling that was conducted to help develop a better understanding of the flow and transport processes within the soil profile and shallow groundwater system under different drainage management scenarios. Results from the modeling demonstrate that dominant flow and transport characteristics at the field site were successfully replicated, including higher, more continuous tile discharge and lower peak tracer concentrations in FD tile effluent; as compared to CD, where discharge was intermittent but peak concentrations were higher. Explicit representation of preferential flow in the modeling work was essential, as macropores were shown to transmit > 98 % of surface infiltration, tile flow, and tile nutrient loads for both FD and CD. Results show that while CD can reduce tile discharge and soluble nutrient loads and concentrations in tile effluent and hence surface water receptors, it can also promote NO3 loading into groundwater.
WEBINAR SERIES INFORMATION:
CANCID’s 2024/2025 webinar series continues to deliver engaging topics, including the upcoming session on ICID – A History and Outlook (Dec 18, 2024) and more to be announced.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Visit CANCID Webinar Series or contact info@cancid.org.