Surge Ponds

 

The Mower County Soil & Water office has become involved with a research project known as “Infiltration Ponds” or another name is “Surge Ponds”.  The concept for this project came through the Mn Department of Ag and the funding is provided by The Nature Conservancy.  The main theme for this research is to filter nutrients out of tile water and surface water and trap sediment, keeping them out of streams and lakes.  The ponds will be seeded to native grasses and in the bottom of the ponds will be a wood chip bioreactor.

Jeff Strock, a University of Mn Extension soil scientist who is leading the research, says that nutrients coming from Midwest farm fields contribute to poor water quality in the nation’s rivers and lakes, and hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico.  Even when growers use best management practices, nutrient losses from subsurface drainage can be significant.

 

Two infiltration ponds have been constructed in Mower County.  The first one is on the Carmen Start farm in Bennington Township, Section 16 along side the County Drainage Ditch #1 and the second one is on the Bonnie Kruegel farm in Clayton Township, Section 9 along side the County Drainage Ditch #8.  These two areas have never been farmed so the farming practices and the drainage of the farms will not be altered.  Control structures have been installed with these ponds so that samples will be taken to give results of the research.

Bonnie Kruegel Clayton Twp. Section 9		Carmen Start Bennington Twp. Section 16
Before Construction		Before Construction
During Construction		During Construction
After Construction		After Construction