From primary school we know that Latvia lies in the temperate climate zone, where all natural processes unfold calmly, and where even the annual rainfall is strictly fixed at 685.6 mm (a 1 mm thick layer of water is formed when 1 litre of water falls on 1 m²). So we receive this natural resource free of charge and in a proper amount.

But what should be done, for example, after this May's rainfall in the Madona area, which exceeded the norm fourfold, if it has wrecked the sown fields, and how can further losses be avoided? Town and city dwellers, too, quite often feel the unruliness of water.

Where should one look for a fair solution? To the government, to an insurer or to the mass media?

And so the field has turned into a quagmire, the drain outlets cannot be found in the ditch, and the old drainage system is not working. A sensible landowner seeks out a rarely encountered phenomenon — a drainage engineer — and asks them. And learns that the top layer of the heavy clay soil has become compacted, that no filtration is taking place, and that as a result the water never reaches the drains at all. The drainage outlets must be cleared both of sediment and of shrub roots so that they function properly. What is more, water only infiltrates loose soil that has been properly worked. Such a field could be made usable again if it is looked after properly.

Another landowner, meanwhile, has put in a good deal of work to get the better of the excess water — digging a proper pond in a hollow, that is to say a hydraulic structure, and in doing so tearing out the drainage laid there earlier. Unfortunately the water stubbornly refuses to drain away, because there is no outflow.

What should a town dweller do to protect their property from flooding — build a protective embankment or dig?

A great many critical situations and unanswered questions have arisen. A good landowner therefore has every reason to acquire a basic knowledge of soil, the properties of water, land drainage and hydraulic structures. And also of which hydraulic structures require a building permit, which need no more than a simplified drawing, and many other useful matters.

For this reason Smiltenes tehnikums, under ESF+ project No. 4.2.4.2/1/24/I/001 “Support for adult education based on the individual needs of adults” (with a 5–10% co-payment by the participant), is offering the opportunity to study on a further vocational education programme leading to the qualification of Hydraulic Structures Construction Technician, or to gain an understanding of the fundamentals of land drainage by taking the Execution of Hydraulic Land Drainage Works and Environmental Protection modules. More detailed information about the terms of the project and applications for the courses can be found on the STARS platform.

But before that, for those interested we have arranged the opportunity of a six-hour in-person seminar — an introduction to the situations and solutions described above.

The seminar will take place on 17.01.2026 from 10.00 to 13.00 in the main building of Smiltenes tehnikums, room 204 (2nd floor), Kalnamuiža 10, Smiltene parish, and will be led by Guntis Jarohovičs, a certified construction works manager and construction supervisor in hydraulic land drainage engineering.

Participation in the seminar is free of charge.

Application form: Registration for the seminar on land drainage, 17.10.2026

You are most welcome!