The Haldimand Soil & Crop Improvement Association, and Land Improvement Contractors of Ontario (LICO) recently hosted Haldimand Drainage Day in Fisherville, Ontario. As LICO members, we were thrilled to join the event and continue learning about Ontario’s farm drainage. The event consisted of four sessions throughout the afternoon, and was hosted by industry experts.
Session 1: The History of Drainage + Installation Demonstration
Session 2: How to Drain Heavy Clay Soil
Session 3: Resources to Help Plan Your Farm Drainage
Session 4: Managing Drainage Outlets
In this blog we’ll be focusing on the history of drainage, and the current state of drainage technology. If you’d like to learn more about the other sessions, simply click the links above.
The History of Drainage
Ontario has always been a global leader of farm drainage legislation and technology. From early government acts that provide drainage rights to farms, to licensing, regulations, and manufacturing.
Machine manufactures have to undergo rigorous testing with very little margin for error in order for their drainage ploughs to be certified. LICO has voted in favour of the drainage industry adopting third party certified pipe by the end of 2024, which is why we distribute BNQ certified Bluewater Pipe that is manufactured in Ontario. Lastly, drainage contractors require licensing through The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness (OMAFA), regulated by the Agricultural Tile Drainage Installation Act, 1990.
Modern drainage ploughs offer computer technology that allows the installer to program the depth, grade, and route of the drainage system with a degree of accuracy that would never be accomplishable manually. Additionally, they’re able to dig and install tile in a significantly smaller amount of time.
All of the details above culminate in the installation demonstration we saw at Drainage Day, where a family business of licensed drainage contractors used a machine manufactured in Ontario to install certified subdrain also manufactured in Ontario.
As technology and resources continue to improve, Ontario farmers will continue to experience the benefits of proper field drainage. Most farmers expect the increased yield from subdrain installation to pay for the investment in five to seven years. What’s abundantly clear from our time at drainage day is that Ontario has always been a leader in the drainage industry. That being said, the implementation of subdrain on a local level still has a lot of opportunity.
If you have any questions about how subdrain can work for your needs, please reach out to our team by phone or email at any time. You can also explore the other things we learned at drainage day here:
Session 1: The History of Drainage + Installation Demonstration
Session 2: How to Drain Heavy Clay Soil
Session 3: Resources to Help Plan Your Farm Drainage
Session 4: Managing Drainage Outlets
