Cleaning or deepening a drainage ditch will most likely remedy many who are impaired by excess water. Example if your neighbor is on the lowest point of natural runoff where he is already prone to excessive water because of a wetland areas, the best option is to ask the county or township to help with improving drainage by cleaning out and deepening existing ditches. This has to be done from time to time because of excessive silt that gets trapped in these ditches over time, unfortunately its all our tax dollars that are used to maintain these natural drainage ditches called coulees. Just like devils lake regional farmers for example back in the 60 70, and 80s where encouraged by the state to deepen and widen existing coulees to help farmers drain natural wetland in thier fields to help in a two ways fill up devils lake - its feeder lakes and help farmers get into their fields faster during wet springs.
There was another thing that was also being constructed during this same period of time that was supposed to work in helping remedy an issue with the runoff that is loaded with chemicals/ high salinity that was garrison diversion was going to connect to the devils lake basin and gradually make its way through the sheyanne River and eventually drain into the red river. But we all know why that didn't happen so now we have a very bad dilemma in devils lake that is going to be a ticking time bomb if we ever go through another dry cycle like we did in the 80s all that runoff full of chemicals is going to make devils lake so toxic from heavy metals that people will be advised that the water safe to get in.
Same as the run off with the use of drain tile, I wonder if anyone has ever tested the water quality coming directly from the discharge pipes at the end of these fields, regardless the solution to the problem is still to clean out existing or getting a special provision to build a new drainage ditch to help this farmer remove excess water from farmers in higher elevation.
