Access to controlled drainage peat field

The controlled drainage peat field is equipped with continuous measurement analytics. It enables research on how groundwater level regulation can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient leaching on conventionally cultivated peat soils, both shallow and deep. It also allows for studying the practical implications of groundwater level control in farming.

The peat field is used for conventional dairy farming. Since 2021, comprehensive data has been collected, including flow rate, nutrient concentrations in runoff water, greenhouse gas emissions, water table level, soil moisture and temperature, precipitation, soil bearing capacity, and crop yield. In addition, soil properties such as water retention curve, water conductivity, carbon content, degree of decomposition, and nutrient content have been determined. This data can be used for hydrological modeling, nutrient leaching and greenhouse gas emission reduction calculations, and nutrient balance assessments.

The service includes access to long-term data and a 12-ditch research platform where groundwater levels can be adjusted. Soil and vegetation can be measured in multiple ways, enabling versatile and in-depth analyses.

• Flow-proportional automatic sampling of runoff water.
• Manual greenhouse gas sampling from bare soil using dark chambers.
• Crop sampling.
• Research data is delivered as agreed.

Researchers, research groups, research communities, research networks, research projects, research organizations, companies.

• Physical, remote or hybrid access.

• Research must be suitable for implementation on the peat field.
• Activities must not compromise the continuity of long-term monitoring.
• Research must not cause long-term harm or reduce the usability of the infrastructure after the experiment.

• Describe the research purpose/question, what will be studied.
• Required special equipment/inputs/measurement devices.
• Describe observations, sample collection, and required monitoring data.