February 27, 2003

 

Water Resource Management Workshops Will Be Held in March

Water quality and quantity continue to be important issues in North Dakota. Watershed management and irrigation are old concepts that have received greater attention in recent years with increased emphasis on regulation and new technology that allow a better understanding of environmental processes.

The North Dakota State University Extension Service is holding workshops across the state are for watershed coordinators, conservationists, Extension agents and others with an interest in water resource management. The workshop is an introduction to the programs and tools available at NDSU designed to assist with water resource management decisions.

The workshops will be:

March 13 at the Elks Club in Dickinson

March 14 at the Seven Seas in Mandan

March 21 at the Eagles Club in Valley City

March 26 at the Comfort Inn in Minot

March 27 at the Ramsey Co. Courthouse in Devils Lake

The workshops will start at 9:30 a.m. with a session on surface water. NDSU agricultural engineer Lowell Disrud will discuss watersheds and water quality modeling in North Dakota. NDSU water quality specialist Bruce Seelig will describe how surface water can be assessed for potential nutrient contamination on a county-wide scale. Shawn Dekeyser, an NDSU range scientist, will outline how remote sensing has been used to determine wetland condition in North Dakota.

A second session will focus on groundwater. NDSU water quality specialist Sheri Fox will describe how aquifers in North Dakota counties are evaluated for potential pesticide leaching. Seelig will give an overview of how nitrate leaching may be assessed. Scott Korom, visiting geological engineer from UND, will discuss his research related to the natural capacity for North Dakota aquifers to cleanse nitrate.

The workshop will reconvene at 1 p.m. with a strategies for farmstead well protection outlined by NDSU geospatial specialist John Nowatzki. NDSU agricultural engineer Tom Scherer will discuss septic system design and construction. Agricultural engineer Dean Steele and soil scientist Frank Casey will discuss research on irrigation management and water quality over the Oakes aquifer. Agricultural engineer Vern Hofman will discuss studies of dryland farming and deep movement of nitrates near Mandan.

Afternoon sessions will close with a review of database resources related to water resource management. The NDSU/NDASS Landuse project will be discussed. Dath Mita, remote sensing specialist show how annual LandSat images of landuse may be applied to water resource management. Dennis Rindy, NDSU Web site technician will provide a review of water resource information available online through the USDA Northern Plains and Mountains Regional Water Quality program.

There is no registration fee for these workshops. However, if individuals are interested in participating in these workshops, please contact Bruce Seelig at (701) 231-8690 or bseelig@ndsuext.nodak.edu .

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Source: Bruce Seelig, (701) 231_8690, bseelig@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231_9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu