A team led by The Nature Conservancy is pioneering significant reductions in nutrients and sediment in Great Lakes tributaries and coastal areas by developing a new approach to using private (in-field tiling) drain water management and public drainage ditches that will improve flow regimes and water quality. By using advancements in agriculture, engineering and financing, the team is putting conservation practices in place that will slow the movement of water off of farm fields, reduce drainage fees for private landowners, and reduce maintenance costs of public drainage ditches. It’s a win-win.
Check out the team’s video:
And CONGRATULATIONS to this team for being selected for a competitive USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service’s Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG). With this grant the team will continue their work in the Saginaw Bay and Western Lake Eric Basin to incentivize the installation of conservation practices on farmland that improve water quality and reduce maintenance costs for public drains.
Click on this interactive map, under Conservation Drain Finance, to read about the CIG award.
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/programs/financial/cig/?cid=nrcseprd1332220
–Shannon Donley, Project Implementation Manager