Stewardship & Innovation | Huronview Demo Farm

Sub-irrigation Project (2026)

In southern Ontario, both urban and agricultural runoff contribute to downstream flooding, erosion and water quality issues. The Huronview Demonstration Farm offers a unique chance to explore how existing infrastructure can be leveraged to store, manage, and reuse water in ways that benefit both agriculture and the environment.

This project will address three considerations.

1. Agricultural and urban water infrastructure operate in isolation, despite potential for synergy.

While urban and agricultural runoff are often managed separately, sites like Huronview have potential for integrated solutions. The proximity of municipal infrastructure to agricultural lands creates a unique opportunity to capture urban runoff and repurpose it for farm-scale water management. Exploring this connection could reveal beneficial practices that support both agricultural and municipal goals.

2. Storm runoff causes event surges that worsen erosion and flooding.

Current drainage systems release water quickly following storm events, contributing to peak flow surges that strain downstream systems. By redirecting and temporarily storing water from urban and agricultural sources in existing lagoons and wetlands, it becomes possible to slowly release it over several days. This would reduce peak flows during rain events.

3. Stored runoff is a valuable resource that could improve crop yields.

During summer months, water scarcity can limit productivity in crops. Stored runoff from spring and early summer storms could be used for sub-irrigation, delivered through existing tile infrastructure.

Existing wetland, contour drainage, and control gate infrastructure position the Huronview Demonstration Farm as an excellent candidate to pilot an integrated approach that captures urban and agricultural runoff, stores it in existing lagoon and wetland infrastructure, and applies it through controlled subsurface irrigation. When the system is not being used for irrigation, it can be passively used to mitigate peak flows, via surge storage and timed release. By layering these practices, the project will test how runoff reuse can serve as a multi-benefit best practices that addresses important water management goals. The effectiveness of such strategies will be monitored with soil moisture sensors, water quantity and quality testing, and crop yield data. The findings will help in the development of practical design guidance for scaled replication while also supporting key objectives in nutrient management and soil health.

Furthermore, with support from project research partners from the University of Guelph, there is the opportunity to leverage existing monitoring resources to:

a) Better understand soil moisture responses during irrigation

With support from Researchers from the University of Guelph (Dr. Laura VanEerd and Dr. David Mcarthy) soil moisture profiles at upper, mid and low slope positions in the no tile, pattern tile and contour/control gate field will be tested.

b) Test the efficacy of non-commercial instrumentation.

With support from the University of Guelph (Dr. David McCarthy) and the University of Waterloo (Dr. Merrin McRae) the efficacy of non-commercial soil moisture and water flow sensors will also be trialed.

Controlled drainage project

Why tile drainage?

There are very few plants or crops that grow well in saturated soils. Just as houseplants are grown in pots with holes in the bottom, our food crops are grown in agricultural soils with drainage. Drainage involves the installation of perforated plastic tubing (tiles) installed 2-3 feet deep which drains the excess soil moisture from the crop root zone and carries it to a safe outlet.

Why controlled drainage?

Underground control gates can regulate the outflow from the tile and the water levels in the soil. Controlled drainage makes more moisture available to crops during times of low precipitation, encourages more water to infiltrate deeper into the ground, allows the soil to serve as a reservoir during heavy rainfall events and reduces the amount of nutrients transported through the tile.

Why contoured tile installation?

Control gates work well on flat ground, but create flooding and excessive pressure if installed on a tile with more than 2 feet of fall. In order to work on a slope, the tile laterals need to be laid underground like steps and at a near flat grade (0.1%), following the contour of the land on a curve.