Grassed Waterway Planning Model Evaluated for Agricultural Fields in the Western Coal Field Physiographic Region of Kentucky.

Grassed waterways placed in high water flow zones substantially reduce erosion in agricultural fields. A recent study proposed a statistical model for waterway planning for a farm in the Outer Bluegrass physiographic region of Kentucky. The model identified where channel erosion was likely to occur based on elevation-derived terrain attributes. The objective of our study was to test this model in fields located in the Western Coal Fields physiographic region where soils differed substantially. Model predictions corresponded well with known areas of concentrated flow (i.e., maps of existing waterways, surface trains, and observations of erosion). The geographic inference space of the waterway planning model was large. This analysis suggested that the proposed modeling procedure was robust and has the potential to be an effective tool to help conservationists identify areas where grassed waterways should be located in some Kentucky landscapes. A proceedings paper describing this work was presented at the 2009 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers Annual International Meeting in Reno Nevada.