The annual Drainage Design Workshop will take place Jan. 26-27, at the North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton.

The workshop is intended for those interested in a more complete understanding of the planning and design principles and practices for drainage, sub-irrigation and water table management systems. Participants in the past included agricultural producers, landowners, consultants, drainage contractors, government agency staff and water resource managers.

The two-day workshops start at 8 a.m. and end at 5 p.m. on day two. The workshops will focus on the planning and design of agricultural tile drainage systems, including water management structures and lift stations to meet profitability and environmental objectives. The course content is taught in modules with emphasis on hands-on learning and ample time for discussions.

Topics covered during the event include the legal aspects of drainage, basics of drainable soils, agronomic perspectives, doing your own tiling, land evaluation tools, utilization of lift stations, sub-irrigation, a farmer panel and wetlands and conservation drainage concepts and techniques.

The design topics begin with basic design considerations and progress through individual small-team projects with several hands-on, problem-solving examples covering basic design and layout principles, water flow calculations, drain spacing, sizing and grades. Design principles for lift stations, control structures and other conservation drainage practices also are considered.

“With low crop prices, producers simply cannot afford to have low crop yields due to excess water,” says Hans Kandel, NDSU Extension Service agronomist, and one of the organizers of the event. “Water management with tile drainage is one way to reduce crop risk, but each field needs to have an appropriately designed system to optimize crop yields.”

The workshop is a collaborative effort of the University of Minnesota and North Dakota State University Extension Services.

The early registration fee is $250. The workshop is limited to 55 participants. Due to seating limitations, on-site registration will not be available on the day of the event.

One other drainage design workshop will be held Feb. 17-18 in Marshall, Minn., on the campus of Southwest State University.

To register for either of the workshops, go to https://www.regonline.com/2016Drainage.

For more information, contact Tom Scherer, NDSU Extension agricultural engineer, at (701) 231-7239 or thomas.scherer@ndsu.edu; or Hans Kandel, NDSU Extension agronomist at (701) 231-8135 or hans.kandel@ndsu.edu.