Farm Horizons
•
Feb. 8, 2016
we needed to stay more than 150 feet away from them,”
Mathews said.
The distance a tile needs to be kept from a wetland is
usually determined by the depth and size of tile a farmer
desires to install.
“Usually, around 4 feet deep is ideal,” he commented.
“If it’s too shallow or too deep it doesn’t pull the water
the way it’s designed to, and doesn’t work at maximum
efficiency.”
Sometimes, if a wetland is directly through a field, a
farmer can use what is called “non-perf pipe,” which has
no holes to allow water in, and therefore will not drain.
The farmer can have his tile go from one side of a wetland to another without draining it using the “non-perf
tile,” yet can get the proper drainage in his field.
Mathews completes about 4,000 to 5,000 feet of drainage tiling per day in the spring and fall.
“There’s about three weeks in the spring, and one
month in the fall to complete tiling and not affect the
farmers’ growing seasons,” Mathews commented.
Environmental affects
Agricultural drainage tile does not just affect the area
directly around it, according to Grean, it has what is
called a “lateral effect” associated with it.
The lateral affect means that the tile doesn’t only drain
the area around it, but that it can draw water from many
feet away. The size and depth of a tile, soil type, and proximity to a wetland are factors considered when determining the set-back distance of the tile placement.
“It can go from 50 to hundreds of feet away,” Grean
noted. “Individuals proposing to tile near wetland areas
are highly encouraged to stop in and verify that they meet
any applicable set-back requirements.”
Because the drainage tile can degrade the quality of
wetlands, drain them down, and potentially destroy them
altogether, careful placement is necessary to achieve the
delicate balance.
“Draining a wetland is no different than draining a
lake or a stream. If the water is removed from a lake,
the plants and animals that have evolved to live in those
conditions will die. The various plants and animals that
live in and rely on the seasonal fluctuation of water levels
in wetlands are affected when the hydrology is changed
by tiling,” Grean s FFVBख