Using ground-penetrating radar to map agricultural subsurface drainage systems for economic and environmental benefit

Due to economic and environmental considerations, there exists a need for effective, efficient, and nondestructive methods for locating buried agricultural drainage pipes. Ground penetrating radar (GPR), a proximal soil sensing method, can potentially provide a means for drain line detection. This chapter details the evolution of research, through a series of studies conducted over the past twenty years, which focused on farm field mapping of subsurface drainage systems using GPR. The chapter first describes the evaluation of GPR against other proximal soil sensing methods. It then considers the factors potentially impacting GPR drainage pipe detection, goes on to examine GPR assessment of agricultural drainage pipe conditions and associated functionality implications, the effects of GPR antenna orientation relative to drain line directional trends and the integration of GPR with Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) technology. A section on drainage mapping with a multichannel, stepped-frequency, continuous wave 3D-GPR system is also provided which is then followed by a review of complementary employment of GPR and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for drainage system characterization. The chapter concludes with a summary and recommendations for future research.