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Illinois Land Improvement Contractors Association, Inc.
News
Refer A Landowner, Earn Cash
Illinois LICA has partnered with the National Association of Conservation Districts, select Illinois SWCDs, and Ecosystems Services Exchange in mutual support of a pilot project to demonstrate the ability to scale-up conservation drainage practices in the Illinois River Basin to improve water quality, enhance wildlife habitat, and realize crop production benefits that help to support viable and sustainable agriculture.
Illinois LICA Now Offering Custom Flex Tough Delineators
Protect your tile installs and give your customers peace of mind. Illinois LICA is now offering Flex Tough Delineators with custom decals, driver tools, and paint pens. These durable, high-visibility markers enable you to clearly mark tile installation sites and help ensure your work stays protected long after the job is done. Order today and make sure everyone knows where your tile is!
AgTech Innovation Hub Drainage Research Turns into Reality
What if farmers could harness the moisture that falls during the winter season and use it when their crops are lacking water during the growing season — all with the touch of a button.
That’s just what the Automated Drainage Water Management project, backed by the AgTech Innovation Hub, set out to study last year.
Wetlands Efficiently Remove Nitrogen Pollution from Surface Water
Wetlands are an important part of the ecological system, providing a myriad of benefits for people, wildlife, and the environment. They also serve as “nature’s kidneys,” filtering out pollutants from surface water. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign finds that wetlands along the Mississippi River Basin effectively clean up nitrogen runoff from agricultural fields.
OSHA Recordkeeping Guide
The beginning of every year marks the start of OSHA recordkeeping season. Many companies are required to submit specific forms to OSHA and in many cases electronically. Plus, your OSHA 300A summary must be posted in a publicly visible location at your establishment. Get a head-start for next year with this simple OSHA Recordkeeping Guide!
ADMC Statement on MPCA Decision
The Agricultural Drainage Management Coalition (ADMC) appreciates the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s (MPCA) review and decision to deny the recent petition for rulemaking related to the regulation of public drainage system by classifying public drainage projects as a State Disposal System.
Groups File Intent to Sue Vermont Farm Over Drain Tile
Two environmental nonprofits – the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) have jointly served a Notice of Intent to Sue, dated Oct. 16, against Vorsteveld Farm LLP of Panton, VT.
Free Visual Guides for Smarter Water Management
Download six free infographics from FRATCO that make today’s most effective water-focused conservation practices easy to understand and share — from engineered infrastructure to nature-based practices.
Wetlands Help Remedy Agricultural Pollution. Some Illinois Farmers Are Installing New Ones
Fulton’s family has been farming in Illinois since the 1890s. Fulton, who now grows mostly soybeans and corn, said he thinks a lot about how to protect the land. That explains, in part, why he has created a man-made wetland on his 690-acre property in Livingston County, a method that has been gaining traction as an agricultural innovation.
Optimizing Saturated Buffers for Nitrogen Reduction
Saturated buffers are an innovative conservation drainage practice designed to reduce nitrate losses from agricultural drainage systems. By rerouting tile drainage water through a vegetated buffer area, these systems remove nitrate from the water, significantly improving water quality.
Government Shutdown Continues - Some Construction Projects Paused
The faceoff between Republicans and Democrats in the Senate shows little progress in finding a compromise that would allow the Federal government to reopen shuttered offices as the impasse enters its third week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) continues to bring the House passed continuing resolution(CR) up for a vote in an attempt to get the eight democrat votes needed to pass the measure.
DOT Withholds California Funding Over English Requirement for Truckers
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Oct. 15 he will withhold $40 million from California because it is failing to enforce English-language requirements for truckers. DOT launched an investigation into state commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirement enforcement following a deadly Florida crash involving a foreign truck driver who made an illegal U-turn.
LICA Supports Effort to Prevent Minnesota Permitting Requirements for Agricultural Drainage
LICA and Minnesota LICA are participating in an effort to dissuade the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) from attempting to regulate public agricultural drainage systems under the State Disposal System (SDS) permit program. LICA has joined the effort initiated by the Agriculture Drainage Management Coalition (ADMC) requesting that a petition from a coalition of environmental groups for the permitting requirements be declined.
Why No-Touch Tools are Critical in Trench Shoring Operations
Underground construction sites are high-risk environments where workers routinely interact with suspended loads, heavy materials, and moving equipment. These tasks often require guiding, aligning, or steadying objects by hand, which puts workers directly in harm’s way.
Using ACPF Output Maps to Foster More Impactful Conservation Conversations
Effective communication is essential to advancing the adoption of agricultural conservation practices. One powerful tool that supports these efforts is the Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF)—a science-based, data-driven approach to watershed planning that helps stakeholders visualize conservation opportunities and better understand the landscape.
ADMC Responds to Petition for Rulemaking on Agricultural Drainage
The Agricultural Drainage Management Coalition (ADMC) will submit a formal response to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) regarding the petition for rulemaking filed on August 28, 2025. The petition seeks to classify public drainage systems as “State Disposal Systems” (SDS) requiring MPCA permits under Chapter 115 of Minnesota Statutes.
Iowa State Extension Issues Guide to Prepare for GPS Datum Shift
In 2026, big changes are coming to the geodetic reference systems “datums” behind the global positioning system (GPS). This could mean big changes for farmers who use GPS for precision agriculture, as well as surveying or constructions. The changes may affect A-B lines, boundaries and other mapped data, such as tile drainage.
Quantifying Microplastics in Environmental Waters: Mass Concentrations are Superior to Abundance
Microplastics are contaminants of global concern that are primarily studied in marine and urban environments. Understanding of microplastics in drained agricultural watersheds is lacking. We aimed to evaluate microplastics in ditch and tile drainage water through periodic sampling.
Water Quality a Priority for Farmers and Ranchers
Water is a crucial resource for farmers and ranchers. Beyond keeping their crops, forage and livestock healthy and growing, the water used on the farm is also part of their families’ and communities’ water supply. This Market Intel details the many ways farmers and ranchers protect water quality.
