Chapter 4.

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT AND PRACTICES

• Watershed management is a term used to describe the process of

implementing land use practices and water management practices to

protect and improve the quality of the water and other natural resources

within a watershed by managing the use of those land and water resources

in a comprehensive manner.
4.1. Components of Watershed Management
Watershed Management comprises the following components:-

• Land management (land use planning, for example);

• Biomass management

• Water management

• Management of social issues. 1

4.1.1. Land management
• The land management refers to keep all those properties of
land in proper order, which likely to affect the soil yield
effectiveness.

• The land characteristics such as terrain, slope, formation,

depth, texture, moisture, infiltration rate and soil capability
are the main to consider under land management activities
for watershed development.

2
• Land and land resources refer to a delineable area of the earth's terrestrial

surface, encompassing all attributes of the biosphere immediately above

or below this surface, including those of the near-surface, climate, the soil

and terrain forms, the surface hydrology (including shallow lakes, rivers,

marshes and swamps),

• It also includes the near-surface sedimentary layers and associated

groundwater and geohydrological reserve, the plant and animal

populations, the human settlement pattern and physical results of past

and present human activity (terracing, water storage or drainage

structures, roads, buildings, etc.)

3
• Land management is also the process of managing the use and

development of land resources (in both urban and rural settings).

• Land resources are used for a variety of purposes which may

include organic agriculture, reforestation, water resource

management and eco-tourism projects.

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• The land is a limited resource, more and more substantial
demand makes it increasingly rare.

• The pressure on land resources becomes heavy and is shown

by the decline of agricultural production, the deterioration of
the quantity and quality of land by competition for the access
to land.

5
• From a demographic perspective, the world's population is still on
the increase, it was 2.5 billion in 1950 and is now 7 billion and could
reach 9 billion by 2050s, which means a corresponding increase of
the use of land resources.

• This pressure on land and overexploitation faced by land resources

have resulted in many forms of degradation manifested by:-
– desertification,

– loss of biodiversity,

– deforestation,
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 – land degradation,

– water degradation, etc.

• The following diagram illustrates the relationship pressure-problem-

symptom.

7
• Land degradation is a global phenomenon.

• Land degradation is the reduction or loss of the biological or

economic productivity and complexity of rain-fed cropland, irrigated

cropland, or range, pasture, forest or woodlands resulting from

natural processes, land uses or other human activities and

habitation patterns such as land contamination, soil erosion and the

destruction of the vegetation cover.

• Land degradation is estimated to reach over 2 billion hectares

worldwide and threatens the livelihoods of over one billion people.

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• Almost two-fifths of the land area is arid, inadequately supplied

with fresh water and it is estimated that a large proportion of this

land is, to some extent, degraded.

• About 65% of arable land may have already lost some of their

biological and physical functions.

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• In broad sense the land management interventions includes
following activities:-

– Vegetative measures

– Structural measures

– Production measures; and

– Protection measures.

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• The vegetative measures are the primary land management
measures.
• The development of grass lands/pasture lands for erosion/soil
loss control; adoption of contour farming and strip cropping
practices on hill faces; growing of vegetation on barren lands
or simply keeping the land under vegetation are the common
practices used under vegetative measures for land
management.

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• These measures are very effective to check the soil erosion,
along with less cost expensive and easily practicable for the
farmers.

• The practices such as development of vegetative cover, plant

cover, mulching, vegetative hedges, grassland management,
agro- forestry etc., are also included under this kind of
measures.

12
• The structural measures (mechanical conservation measures) such
as bunds, terracing, check dams etc., are used at the steep lands for
controlling the soil loss, especially when vegetative measures are
ineffective.

• These measures are not so common as the vegetative measures

because of involvement of heavy expenditure of money.

13
• Similarly, gabions used for stream bank erosion control; the gully
plugging structures like drop structures, spillways etc., used for gully
control; and farm ponds used for safe water storage in the farmland
area, are also considered as mechanical measures for land
management.
• These structures offer their immediate effect on soil erosion/soil loss
check, but very cost expensive, requires proper site selection, design
and construction.
• Because of this reason, their construction is not possible by the
farmers; the government normally executes it.
14
• The production measures for land management include the practices
such as mixed cropping, strip cropping, cover cropping, crop rotations,
cultivation of shrubs and herbs, contour cultivation, conservation tillage,
land leveling, use of improved variety seeds, horticultural practices etc.
• The objective of these measures is to enhance the production potential
of the land either by conserving the soil or enriching the nutrient status.
• The protective measures are the landslide control structures, gully
plugging structures, runoff collection structures etc.
• Adoption of these measures depends very much on the land
characteristics.
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From land Management to sustainable land management
• This alarming situation undermines the policies and models of land planning
and land management that are currently implemented and which are based on
the overexploitation of resources and on methods that have little concern
about ecological balances.
• Therefore, proper management of land, of all their attributes and components
is needed to a better rationalization of their use.
• Moreover, it is quite possible to monitor and address land degradation or even
reverse the trends,
• If land is used efficiently, if all functions are taken into account and if the long-
term interest of all segments of the population is stronger than the short-term
corporate interests of privileged groups at global, national and local levels.

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• However, issues relating to land use are often complex and
require a high degree of understanding of the ecological
balance.

• The structure of political decision making should be organized to

facilitate an integrated approach of land use management.

• Thus, it is important to comprehend the dimensions and

implications of land management as a paradigm in relation to
the rights and restrictions and responsibilities related to land.

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Figure : land management paradigm

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• Therefore, a sustainable management of land resources requires sound
policies and planning, based on the knowledge of these resources, on the
requests for the use to which they are allocated and on interactions
between land and use made of.

• Sustainable Land Management (SLM) is defined as a knowledge-based

procedure that helps integrate land, water, biodiversity, and
environmental management (including input and output externalities) to
meet rising food and fiber demands while sustaining ecosystem services
and livelihoods.

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• SLM is necessary to meet the requirements of a growing

population.

• Improper land management can lead to land degradation and

a significant reduction in the productive and service functions.

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4.1.2. Biomass management
• Biomass management is management of watershed using vegetation
measures/biological measures.
• In a watershed the task of biomass management can be achieved by
following intervention areas:-
– Eco-preservation
– Biomass regeneration
– Forest management and conservation
– Plant protection and development of Agroforestry
– Increasing productivity of animals
– Income and employment generation activities
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– Coordination of health and sanitation programmes

– Better standard of living of people

– Eco-friendly life style of people, and

– Formation of learning community.

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4.1.3. Water management
• Under watershed management task the water management is one of the
very important components.

• A good water potential in watershed provides a conducive path for its

overall development.

• In watershed the main source of water is the rainfall; however, the

incoming ground water from surrounding areas also shares to some extent.

• A large portion of rainwater is lost either due to flowing away (runoff) from
the area or by some other means.

• In order to manage the rainwater, it is very essential to check the out

flowing rain water. 23
• It could be done by constructing the structures like pond, reservoirs
etc. in the area.

• Also, the rain dependent farming systems can be practiced for

better utilization of rainwater is also considered as a measure for
water management.

• Apart from conserving the rainwater, their careful use either for
crop production or other farm operations, also play very significant
role in water management.

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• From irrigation point of view, the selection of most suitable
irrigation method depending on the crop, soil, land topography,
availability of water in the area etc., is very important.

• Those irrigation methods should always be at priority, which have

better water use efficiency, lesser loss of water etc.

• Similarly, the choice on cropping system, crop variety, and crop

duration etc., based on the water availability can also be very
effective in water management.

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• Overall, various interventions followed for water management are
outlined below:-

a. Rainwater harvesting.

b. Ground water recharge.

c. Maintenance of water balance.

d. Preventing water pollution.

e. Economic use of water.

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• In watershed, the water conservation by rainwater harvesting is most
significant as compared to the other means.

• The harvested rainwater can be retained for the duration of its need by
designing and constructing the suitable structures.

• The rainwater harvesting can be in the form of profile water conservation or

surface water storage.

• The water conserved in the topsoil profile is the profile water conservation.

• Using the practices of tillage operations such as conservation tillage, zero

tillage, mulch tillage etc. it can be achieved.

• Depending on the moisture content in the topsoil profile a suitable crop can
be planted successfully.
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• Also, if the quantum of rainwater is very high, then a part of that gets

percolate to the lower soil profile and joins to the water table.

• This happening is called ground water recharge.

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• There have been formulated several water harvesting techniques,
worldwide.

• However, few simple and cost effective rainwater-harvesting

structures are listed as under:

a. Percolation pits/tanks

b. Farm ponds

c. Bunds and terraces

d. Reservoirs

e. Community tanks, and

f. Water spreading.
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4.1.4. Livestock management
• Agricultural practices and watershed management are always
linked.

• The use of herbicides and pesticides degrade watersheds, as

does poor farming and grazing practices.

• Proper livestock management and watershed health

complement each other.

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How Does Livestock Management Affect Watershed?

• Managed grazing is an integral part of regenerative

agriculture.

• Grasslands evolved from the “ecological disturbance”

provided by herbivores for millennia.

• Those herbivores ranged from antelope to bison to horses,

and now include cattle.

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• Plant communities depend on these natural grazing patterns for their
annual regrowth.

• As cattle graze, their hooves break up and aerate the soil.

• Their manure and other organic matter mixes into the soil, enriching
it while creating habitats for other residents of the ecosystem.

• Water flow is stimulated.

• Conventional cattle grazing, on which the animals graze continuously

on the same land, serves as a significant source of non-industrial
water pollution.
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• Researches found that using multi-paddock grazing for cattle, as opposed to
conventional grazing, led to a 40 percent reduction in surface water runoff,
along with a 5 percent increase in soil filtration.

• The bottom line is that more rainfall remained in the fields, boosting plant
growth, and the rest seeped slowly into the groundwater.

• Downstream, that reduces the risk of flooding when heavy storms occur.

• Multi-paddock grazing, a mainstay of regenerative agriculture, puts cattle

on the land for short periods of time, where they can graze as nature
intended.

• They are then moved to another area to restart the cycle.

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• The land is not overgrazed, there is far less runoff, and the result is a
gain in both water and carbon for the soil.

• The ground’s water holding capacity improves.

• The amount of precipitation that falls is less crucial than the amount
of precipitation the ground keeps.

• The environmental impact of cattle depends on how they are

managed.

• With regenerative grazing, plans are devised with objectives for

riparian habitat, stream beds, and other watershed facets.

• Regenerative grazing manages watershed and soil health.

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4.2. Watershed Management Practices
• A watershed may involve a host of problems related to soil, water,
society etc., and constraints in between.

• For achieving the target, various practices need to follow in the

watershed.

1. Watershed protection and rehabilitation

2. Reforestation and area closures

3. Soil and water conservation practices

4. Gully control

5. Stream and landslide stabilization

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6. Protection and restoration of source water

7. Buffer zone protection

8. Pasture and range management and improvement

9. Pollution control and prevention

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4.2.1. Watershed protection and rehabilitation
• Concern for the declining health of watersheds have led to the
implementation of various management practices to rehabilitate the
proper hydrologic functioning of degraded watershed.
• Management practices to rehabilitate watersheds in poor condition
include: -
– controlling gullies with properly constructed check dams
– other mechanical controls;
– protecting unstable stream channel from further damage;
– establishing protective tree, shrub, or herbaceous covers on
degraded sites and
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– further restriction of timber harvesting, livestock grazing, and

other exploitative land-use practices.

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• Unless humans understood the value of water, they will never do
anything sensible in terms of conservation of a watershed.

• Hence, urgent actions needs to be taken by policy and decision

makers at the highest levels of government to expose the imminent
danger of watershed degradation to the general public and set up
participatory measures with the aim of halting and reversing the
degradation processes.

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4.2.2. Reforestation and area closures
• In highly degraded areas reforestation is an important measure for
regeneration of the soil and water balances.
• Trees fulfill many functions such as protection from erosion or
conserving soil moisture.
• Two decisions have to be made initially when reforestation is to be
done:
– should the area be completely closed for cultivation and pasture
for a specific period? If so, the border must be marked clearly.
– which works better: direct seeding or planting of nursery-grown
seedlings?

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• Area closure’ is defined as area delineated to exclude human and

livestock interferences.

• The importance of area closure to improve vegetation cover,

composition, density, richness, diversity, and providing economic and

ecological benefits to local communities around in a watershed.

• The aim of area closures is to prevent further degradation of the

ecosystems, advance re-vegetation /forest regeneration, and restore

the overall ecological conditions of the area.

41
• This is done by closing off areas from interference and damage by
both humans and animals to allow for natural regeneration of the
land.

• Area closure is known to improve ground vegetation cover, which

in turn enhance better soil conditions, microclimate conditions and
water percolation.

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How Is Area Closure Implemented?

• Degraded land is closed from human and animal interferences for at

least 3 -5 years in order to ensure rehabilitation of the land.
• Longer time kept area closures can facilitate large numbers of
woody species to grow in to higher height.
• Additional Sustainable Land Management (SLM) measures such as
terracing, enrichment plantation and over-sowing of grass are
among the activities that are often undertaken along with the area
closure.

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4.2.3. Soil and water conservation practices
Purpose of Soil and Water Conservation Measures

– to control runoff and thus prevent loss of soil by soil erosion,

– to reduce soil compaction;

– to maintain or to improve soil fertility;

– to conserve or drain water;

– to harvest (excess) water

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• A variety of soil and water conservation
measures are well known.

• These technologies can be differentiated

either by their main purpose or by type.

• As many among them fulfill several

Types of soil and water conservation
functions simultaneously these are measures.
classified here by type:-

– Physical measures (also termed

mechanical or technical measures);

– Biological measures (also termed

vegetative measures);

– Agronomic measures (sometimes called

best management practices) 45
• In brief, the various control measures adopted for watershed
management work are listed as under:

1. Vegetative Measures (Biological Practices):

i. Strip cropping

ii. Pasture farming

iii. Fertilizing the crop land, and

iv. Grass land farming etc.

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2. Engineering Measures (Structural Practices/physical measures) also
termed mechanical measures);

i. Gully control

ii. Diversions

iii. Water ponds

iv. Reservoirs

v. Drainage works

vi. Flood protection

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3. Agronomic measures (sometimes
called best management practices).
• Agronomic measures are applicable
in the landscape of ≤2% slope.
• Agronomic measures reduce the
impact of raindrops through the
covering of soil surface and
increasing infiltration rate and water
absorption capacity of the soil which
results in reduced runoff and soil
loss through erosion. Figure. Agronomic conservation measures

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• Agronomic conservation measures function by:-

– reducing the impact of raindrops through interception and thus

reducing soil erosion and

– increasing infiltration rates and thereby reducing surface runoff

and soil erosion .

• Agronomic measures can be applied together with physical or

biological soil and water conservation measures.

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• In some systems they may be more effective than structural
measures .

• Furthermore, it is the cheapest way of soil and water conservation.

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4.2.4. Gully control
• A gully is a landform created by running water, mass movement, or
commonly a combination of both eroding sharply into soil or other
relatively erodible material, typically on a hillside or in river floodplains or
terraces.

• Gullies are incised areas where concentrated runoff flow has eroded the
terrain creating an ephemeral stream.

• In addition to become a major source of sediment, gullies divide fields

increasing costs of farm operations and creating risks for staff that have to
cross them or work nearby.

• Gullies can be of many different sizes but they are usually classified as
ephemeral or permanent gullies.
51
• Ephemeral gullies are those of
small size (as a convention
less than 0.3 m depth) and
can be covered using
equipment usually present at
the farms (e.g. plough) while
Figure. Stabilized ephemeral gully
permanent gullies are of
Stabilized ephemeral gully
larger size and their control
requires heavier equipment
and specific techniques.

52
• Examples of gully erosion control structures:
– Grassed waterway

– Set of several check dams

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– Combined soil conservation measures for a gully erosion control.

54
– maintaining remnant vegetation along drainage lines and
eliminating grazing from these areas.

– increasing water usage by planting deep-rooted perennial

pastures, trees, or an appropriate mixture of both thus
maintaining healthy, vigorous levels of vegetation.

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4.2.5. Stream and landslide stabilization
• Many waterfront developments feature homes, roads and
buildings constructed along rivers, streams, and wetlands that
are particularly susceptible to erosion over time.

• Due to the potential loss of residences, businesses, and

supporting infrastructure, stabilization measures are often
necessary for the long-term preservation of the upland
portion of the property.

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Figure. Stream sides

57
• Stabilization Options In order of preference

– Minor erosion with low risk →→ Maintain and/or enhance

vegetation

– Minor erosion with some risk →→ Non-structural practices

including bioengineering

– Major erosion with risk, natural buffers present →→Hybrid

(vegetative & structural)

– Major erosion with high risk, natural buffers absent or not

feasible→→Structural controls
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• A landslide is defined as the movement of a mass of rock, debris, or
earth down a slope.

• Landslides are a type of "mass wasting," which denotes any down-

slope movement of soil and rock under the direct influence of
gravity.

• Land stability increases when groundwater is prevented from rising

in the slide mass by:-

– directing surface water away from the landslide,

– draining groundwater away from the landslide to reduce the

potential for a rise in groundwater level,
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 – covering the landslide with an impermeable membrane, and

– minimizing slope through cut and fill.

4.2.6. Protection and restoration of source water

• Source water protection practices are actions taken to prevent

contamination of surface and groundwater sources of drinking
water.

• In choosing protection practices, water systems and government

officials should account for the types of contaminant threats, physical
landscape properties, public input, and other site-specific factors
identified during the assessment process.
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General protection practices of water source:-

• Conserving wetlands in source water protection areas can help

protect water quality, recharge aquifers, and maintain surface water
flow during dry periods.

• Wetlands also provide important fish and wildlife habitat.

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• Examples of source water protection practices include:
– Land use controls (such as zoning ordinances and growth
controls).
– Regulations, permits, and inspections
– Land conservation and "natural infrastructure" solutions
– Best management practices.
– Public education and outreach.
– Cost share programs and financial incentives.
– Hazard mitigation.

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Specific Protection Practices :-
• Erosion and sediment control measures help prevent sediment, chemicals,
and nutrients from washing off construction sites and into lakes, rivers, and
streams that serve as drinking water sources.
• Use Clean Water Act Tools for Source Water Protection.
Restoration of water sources
• In the case of rivers which are polluted mostly by anthropogenic activities,
the various restoration techniques followed includes:-
– physical methods such as sewage/dirt interception,
– water diversion,
– algae removal by mechanical means,
– chemical methods such as adding chemicals and chemical flocculation.
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4.2.7. Buffer zone protection

• Buffer zone is areas between core protected areas and the

surrounding landscape or seascape which protect the network from

potentially damaging external influences and which are essentially

transitional areas.

• Buffers are linked together as a conservation strategy.

• Buffer zones are designated areas used to protect sensitive

landscape patches (e.g., wetlands, wildlife reserves) from negative

external pressures.
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• Buffers help filter out sediment and pollutants before they reach
lakes and streams, which benefits fish, wildlife, and people.

• Buffers may provide habitat between wetlands, allowing species to

travel from one wetland to another.

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4.2.8. Pasture and range management and improvement

• A Rangeland is an extensive area of land which contains forage

grasses and legumes and other herbage plants where animal like
cattle, sheep and goat can graze.

• The forage plants such as the grasses and legumes used for grazing
by the farm animals are called pasture.

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• To ensure the continuous availability of grasses and legumes in a
watershed, it is necessary to adopt some management principle
that would lead to the improvement of rangeland and pasture.

• Such principle includes: -

– Controlled stocking
– Reseeding

– Legume and Grass Mixture

– Paddocking

– Avoidance of overgrazing

– Use of Fertilizer
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– Pest control
– Controlled burning
– Irrigation

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2.9. Pollution control and prevention

• Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural

environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to

the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms.

• It can take the form of chemical substances.

• It might be air or water resource pollution.

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• Pollution prevention means eliminating or reducing the amount and toxicity
of potentially harmful substances at their sources, prior to generation,
treatment, off-site recycling or disposal.

• It emphasizes preventing or minimizing pollution, rather than controlling it

once it is generated.

• There are many methods for prevention of pollution.

• For water pollution the main priority is to improve water, sanitation and
hygiene provision.

• If everyone has access to effective sanitation (latrines) and there is no open

defecation, this will prevent contamination of the environment with human
faces.
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