Constructed Wetlands

A constructed wetland is an engineered ecosystem designed to optimize specific wetland characteristics and functions to improve water quality. Constructed wetlands provide long-term, effective treatment of tile drainage.

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Conservation Effects Assessment Project: Publications

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USDA’s Conservation Effects Assessment Project, CEAP, provides a suite of publications highlighting the effects of voluntary conservation across the nation’s working lands. The site compiles reports, articles fact sheets, and webinars on topics including crop lands, grazing lands, wetlands, wildlife, and watersheds.

Michigan State University Drainage Resources

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This Michigan State University Biosystems & Agricultural Engineering website provides education and practical solutions to address drainage issues.

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Smart Wetlands

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Smart Wetlands, an initiative of The Wetlands Initiative, specifically sites, designs, and constructs tile-treatment wetlands to improve water quality in Illinois. Their website includes several resources for better understanding the impact of constructed wetlands on nutrient reduction.

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Iowa Learning Farms: Constructed Wetland

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In this webinar, “Tile Flows, Backhoes and Microbes: Constructed Wetlands for Subsurface Drainage Treatment,” Jill Kostel, Ph.D., senior environmental engineer at The Wetlands Initiative, discusses the siting, design and implementation of constructed tile-treatment wetlands that use the naturally occurring wetland functions and processes to capture and remove nutrients from tile flow.

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Journal of Soil and Water Conservation: Constructed Wetlands

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This research paper analyzes the ability of restored wetlands to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in agricultural drainage water.

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NRCS Constructed Wetlands Video

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Join Illinois Natural Resources Conservation Service and our conservation partners as we demonstrate how to design and build a Constructed Wetland. This new conservation practice helps farmers and private landowners improve water quality.

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