My name is Norman Fausey. I have worked with ARS for many years and I really enjoy
what I do. I didn't anticipate being a noted scientist. I just always had the idea that you
do the best that you can in your job and you work hard and that's been my goal.

Drainage research has its roots in the settlement of the Mid-West. As we came into the
late 50s and early 60s there was change in agriculture and a need for making that
drainage process more efficient. And so, the project was started to improve the
installation of subsurface drainage systems for agriculture.

We did a lot of machine development work. Development of new materials for the
drains themselves. Replacing the heavy concrete and clay tiles with light weight plastic
materials. Developing a concept of the tubing and then being able to control the grade
on that pipe so water would flow out correctly. 

This was really innovative. The first use of lasers in an agricultural application to control
the grade on these drainage machines. 

So, we were kind of on the cutting edge and doing exciting things in terms of
engineering and machinery and lasers and molded plastic pipe. Once that moved
forward and the industry took over, then the research kind of moved toward other
things. 

What's the best design for this system? Traditionally, it had been just run a drainage
pile out to a poorly drained low spot in a field. Well, with mechanization and increasing
farm size we needed systematic tiles under the field and how to design those based on
soil properties became my primary interest area. 

But, agriculture just keeps changing and societies' expectation for agriculture change. It
became apparent that drainage created some environmental challenges. We're
exporting nutrients from the field into the streams and it has off-site and downstream
effects in terms of drinking water quality or algal blooms and fish kills and things like
that we needed to begin to address. 

So, we began to look at "why are the drains open in the winter? When there is no crop
out there, should that drain be exporting water?" so that we don't discharge as much
water into the streams and therefore don't transport as much nutrients. And that had
really become an important new concept for the future. 

Ohio has the most intensive drainage systems in the world. It's much like Holland in
terms of being flat and poorly drained. And so because it was an important technology
for farming, installation of drains was very important to agriculture. 

Ohio took an early lead in the development of drainage for farmers and teaching it to
students, engineers and soil scientists. Graduate students from all over the world came
to Ohio to learn about drainage. So, everybody still regards Ohio and Ohio State
University as the center of excellence for drainage and we've maintained that presence
by calling our unit the Soil Drainage Research Unit. 

Even though there were times when drainage from an environmental standpoint
became a negative word I think we've been able, in the last twenty years, to show that
drainage is in fact an environmental management tool and should be part of the
conservationist's toolbox. 

It really is going to play a significant role in how we manage the environment in the
future. If we just continue to operate drains as making sure that water gets out that's not
the right management but from an environmental standpoint once we have the drains
then we have the tools that we can use to get both agricultural production and
environmental quality. 

The number of people who are involved in drainage research really is low at this time of
our history. There was very little funding, government programs turned away from
drainage as a production practice and the interest in professional work in drainage
subsided significantly because there just weren't jobs. 

But now that we are beginning to understand more how this can contribute to our
management of the environment and managing water quality we're beginning to get
interest from students again. There is an excitement building about how we manage
this excess water and how we use that excess water to meet other needs in our
environment because if it's excess to agriculture, it has other uses. 

I'm very gratified and very humbled, I think, to be singled out and given this award. I feel
a little bit self-conscience because there are so many people and we share ideas and
we work together toward a common goal that I have to say to myself, "Well this is a
recognition of that combined effort and the recognition is great."