WATERSHED MANAGEMENT

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT
The management of a single unit of land with its water drainage system is called watershed management. It is a technique that has several components. The main components of watershed management are:
-Soil and water management and
-Development of vegetative cover
Natural drainage of a watershed unit if managed properly brings about:
-local prosperity due to abundance of water throughout the year
-Abundant water improves the quality of human life in the area by improving health in the community
-Watershed management enhances the growth of agricultural crops and makes it possible to grow more than one crop in a year in dry areas.
-Watershed management begins by taking control over a degraded site by local participation.
-The first step involves taking appropriate soil conservation measures. This is done by constructing a series of long trenches and mounds along hills to hold the rainwater and allow it to percolate in the ground. This ensures that underground stores of water are completely recharged.
-By growing plants, shrubs and trees, soil erosion due to monsoon can be minimized.
-By stall feeding, local grass cover can be increased as free grazing by domestic animals is prevented.
-'Nala' plugs are made in streams so that water is held in streams and does not rush down the hill side.
-Check dams are built in selected sites that hold back large amounts of water.
All the above listed steps constitute watershed management.
Watershed management improves water-table and keeps streams and nalas flowing throughout the year.
-Deforestation is one of the major causes for degraded areas. Afforestation of such degraded areas is an important aspect of watershed management.