CHAPTER THREE

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT
Contents
• Definition of watershed and integrated watershed management
• Watershed characteristics
• Deriving the watershed parameters
• Watershed components
• Watershed processes
• Watershed management practices
Objective
• At the end of the chapter, students will be able to:
• Describe watershed problems and concept of watershed management,
• Discuss the need and importance of watershed management,
• List steps in watershed management,
• Develop watershed management programs
What is Watershed?
Ridge line
Streams
• A watershed describes an area of land that
contains a common set of streams and rivers
that all drain into a single larger body of
water, such as a larger river, a lake or an
ocean.
• It is an area from which runoff flows past a
Common Point single point into a large stream, a river, a lake
or an ocean.

Fig. 1: Watershed
Definition of integrated watershed management
• Integrated Watershed Management (IWM) is
the process of managing human activities and
natural resources (Soil, water and vegetation) on
a watershed basis.
• Integrated Watershed Management:
• Involves the interrelationships among natural
and human resources and links between
upland and down‐stream areas;
• Considers the connection between stream
channel responses and the impacts caused by
natural or human-related events on the
surrounding watershed;
Fig. 2: Watershed with all its components • Involves socioeconomic and human-
institutional along with biophysical
interrelationships
Who benefits from integrated watershed management
• Farmers, local community and larger society can benefit from a sound watershed
management.
• What kind of improvements can be achieved?
Farmers Local community Larger community
• Increased productivity and • Lower land development costs • Reduced risks from floods
higher profits • Reduced flooding and to downstream cities and
• Improved water availability waterlogging farmlands
• Improved soil quality and better • Reduced soil erosion and land • Reduced sedimentation in
drainage degradation agricultural productive
areas and dams
• Improved livelihood • Increased agricultural
productivity • Better conservation of
natural resources
• Improved livelihoods options
• Higher resilience of
• Improved land management communities
• Less socio-economic conflicts
Why Using Watershed Approach?
• The watershed approach allows a clear geographical and hydrological definition of an area
to be managed.
• The management of water must be due to the nature of stream flow ignore administrative
and political boundaries.
• The watershed approach is directly addressing upstream‐downstream water user conflicts
and is consequently leading to problem solution.
• Management and modelling of water resources can only be conducted professional, when a
hydrological watershed is defined:
• The size of the catchment is known
• Water demand can be derived 
• Water availability can be computed 
• Management area can be split into pieces due to geomorphologic conditions.
Watershed characteristics
• Each and every watershed has distinct characteristics of its own.
• Characteristics that affect the pattern of disposal of stream flow in a watershed are:
• Climatic characteristics
• Physiographical characteristics
Climatic characteristics
• If the climatic condition is dry before the rainfall, loss of runoff is more due to infiltration
and evapotranspiration.
• Climatic condition depends on Temperature, Wind Velocity, and Humidity
• Transpiration, Evaporation, and Evapotranspiration depends on Climatic Condition
• The more the intensity of rainfall in the watershed, the more is the peak flow disposal from
the area.
• If the duration is less, time taken to dispose with lower peak flow is also less
Watershed characteristics
Climatic characteristics

• If the rain moves downstream, the peak stream flow of watershed occurs quickly
• If rain moves upstream, the peak flow occurs late
Watershed characteristics
Climatic characteristics
• A peak flow assessment of runoff or flood should be accurately worked out in order to have
correct design of hydraulic structures like:
• Dams
• Weirs
• Barrage
• Reservoirs
• Spillways
• Retaining walls
• Embankments
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Shape:
• Watersheds differ in their shape based on
morphometric parameters like geology and
structure.
• The shape of watershed has a dominant
effect on the characteristics of the
hydrograph of the watershed such as:
• Peak flow,
• Overland flow, and
• Base of hydrograph (run-off time).
Fig. 3: Effect of watershed shape on flow
hydrograph (a) fan shaped (b) converging shape
and (c) double fan shaped
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics Size:
• The size of watershed is governed by the
size of stream or river and the
development and management works
taken.
• For minor irrigation project, size may
be few hundred square kilometers
• For Tank or Pond Irrigation, size is
just few square kilometers
• In watershed management works in
hilly or undulating topography, the
size of watershed may be even much
Fig. 4 Effect of watershed size on flow hydrograph smaller.
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics Slope:
• It controls the rainfall distribution
and movement, land utilization and
watershed behavior.
• If slope is more,
• The velocity is more, and hence
flood water drains quickly
• Results in higher peak discharge
• Reduces infiltration
• Increases the soil transportation
Fig.5: Effects of watershed slope on flow hydrograph
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Drainage:
• The Stream Order, Drainage Pattern, and
Drainage Density have a profound
influence on watershed as to runoff,
infiltration, land management etc.
• It determines the flow characteristics and
erosional behavior.
• If drainage density is more, peak runoff is
more.

Fig. 6: Effect of drainage density on peak flow

Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Stream order:
• First and Second order streams generally form
on steep slopes and flow quickly until they
slow down and meet the next order waterway.
• First to Third order streams generally found in
upper reaches of watershed
• Streams that are classified through 4th to 6th are
called as medium streams
• If stream order is larger than 6th is considered
as river.

Fig. 7: Stream order

Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Drainage pattern:
Pattern Dendritic Trellis Radial Rectangular
Description random, tree- long (subsequent) tributaries tributaries
like branching streams follow radiate away make right
pattern strike valleys fed from a central angle bends
by short tributaries region
descending from
adjacent obsequent
and dip slopes

Controlling flat-lying developed in central jointed or

influences sedimentary differentially highland such faulted
rock, thick eroded fold belts as a volcano or bedrock
sediment, or containing eroding pluton
homogeneous lithology of varying surrounded by
rock strengths sedimentary
uninterrupted rock
by fractures
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Physiography:
• Type of land, its altitude and physical disposition immensely speak about a watershed as to
the climate and planning the activities in greening.
• Hilly tract could be useful mainly for forestry
• Plains of populated areas could be utilized for crops
Land Use:
• The land in watershed is used for numerous purposes such as: dwelling houses, cultivation,
livestock, water harvesting, roads and railways, etc.
• Land use affects the runoff rates.
Soil:
• The soil such as sand absorbs a larger part of runoff water, so the rate of flow is less. Clay
soil produces more flow as its absorption is less.
• Soil parameters such as depth, nature, moisture and fertility determines crops.
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Vegetation cover:
• Vegetation cover retard the flow and increases the infiltration and interception, there by
reducing the peak flow.
• Detailed information on vegetation helps in choosing type, mode and manner of greening
the watershed
Geology:
• Rocks and their structure control formation of a watershed itself because their nature
determines size, shape, physiography, drainage, and groundwater conditions.
• Geological conditions affects the runoff of watershed. If there are some cracks in rocks
joining surface water and groundwater, a part of water flows quickly underground.
• Lakes, storages, swamp hold a part of excess rainfall
Watershed characteristics
Physiographic characteristics
Hydrogeology:
• The availability, quality and distribution of surface water is basic to the final goal of
growing greenery in a watershed.
• Hydrological parameters such as intensity and duration of rainfall help in quantification of
water available in watershed.
• If rainfall continues for longer period with low intensity, evaporation and percolation
increases but runoff is less. Further it may cause landslide in sloping hillside areas.
• The groundwater demand for irrigation, farm plantation, drinking water , domestic use and
industrial use is more as it is relatively less polluted and pure.
• The information about aquifer such as nature, thickness and characteristics should be
known for better planning of watersheds.
Watershed characteristics
Socio-economic characteristics
• A survey of people living in the watershed should be made regarding their
• Needs and wants,
• Economic conditions,
• Health and hygiene,
• Cattle,
• Farming practices and
• Participation in watershed management.
• Demographic profile, sociological stratification, attitude and behavior of community will
affect the watershed management to a great extent.
Deriving the watershed parameters
• Different watershed parameters can be derived using RS and GIS.
• The conventional hydrologic data are inadequate for the purpose of design and
operation of water resources systems.
• RS data can serve as model input for the determination of river
catchment characteristics, such as:
• Land use /land cover,
• Slope,
• Drainage,
• Etc.
Watershed components
• Three basic components in a watershed are: Soil, Vegetation and Water.
Soil:
• Stores and provides water for stream
• Primary source of stream flow
• Storage factors
• Depth & Texture
• Delivery rate factors
• Slope, Texture, and Structure
Vegetation:
• Vegetation performs a variety of functions on the watershed scale:
• Provides resistance to erosion throughout watershed
• Prevents oversaturation of soil
• Protects from splash erosion
• Root channels increase infiltration capacity.
Watershed components
Water:
• How much water is the watershed receiving?
• Climate
• Time of year
• In watersheds where rainfall is the dominant form of precipitation, runoff
occurs in response to storm events and the ability of the watershed to store
precipitation.
• Rainfall delivered at the end of a long, dry period may do no more than
replenish soil moisture, causing little response in stream flow.
Watershed processes
• Watershed constantly undergoes the action and reaction of many hydrologic and hydraulic
components or phenomena.
• Hydrologic  Precipitation, Infiltration, Evaporation, Evapotranspiration
• Hydraulic  Floods, Erosion, Sedimentation, Land slides, Water Scarcity, Water Quality
Degradation.
• Common processes in a watershed are:
• Soils, soil processes, and erosion
• Nutrient cycling
• Pollutant transport
• Riparian habitat and stream buffers
• Stream morphology
• Hydrology
• Stream chemistry
Watershed degradation
• Watershed degradation is the loss of value over time, including the
productive potential of land and water, accompanied by marked changes in
the hydrological behavior of a river system resulting in inferior quality,
quantity and timing of waterflow.
• The protection, improvement and rehabilitation of mountain and/or upland
watersheds are of critical importance in the achievement of overall
development goals.
• Recognizing this, many developing countries are turning increasing attention
and resources to the field of watershed management
Watershed degradation
Causes:
• Faulty agriculture, forestry and pasture (grass land) management leading to
degradation of land.
• Unscientific mining and quarrying.
• Faulty road alignment and construction.
• Industrialization
• Forest fires
• Apathy (less interest) of the people.
Watershed degradation
Effects:
• Less production from agriculture, forests, grass lands etc.
• Erosion increases and decreases biomass production
• Rapid siltation of reservoirs, lakes and river beds.
• Less storage of water and lowering of water table.
• Poverty as a result of less food production.
Watershed management
• It is the judicious and scientific management of three basic natural resources (soil, water
and vegetation) and other resources available to its inhabitants for the wellbeing of the
people.
• The objective of managing a watershed should be clearly defined to find a correct
approach for its development.
• Watershed development and management should be designed in such a way that the
particular objective for which works are designed is achieved.
• The ultimate aims of watershed development and management are:
• To increase agricultural production in sustainable basis to improve economic condition
of the inhabitants and
• To conserve natural resources for future generations maintaining congenial ecosystem.
Watershed management
• The objectives of a watershed management program may be:
• Prevent further damage to land resources,
• Develop lands already damaged,
• Control productivity of land,
• Use available resources in the watershed for optimum production of
crops/fodder/fuel/timber/fruit,
• Check sedimentation of storage reservoir downstream
• Supply good quality water within or outside the watershed,
• Check flood hazard downstream,
• Exploit land resource to meet population pressure, and
• Recharge groundwater.
Watershed management
Selection of priority areas
• A large watershed may have different types of sub-watersheds requiring different treatments.
• It may not be possible to treat the entire area of watershed with land treatment methods.
• In such cases priority area and priority of work should be selected on the basis of survey
reports.
• The basic criteria which are considered for selection of a watershed for its management are:
• Prospects of solving the problem,
• Severity of problem,
• Potential for overall development,
• Availability of technology,
• Adoptability and people's participation, and
• Availability of infrastructure.
Watershed management
Steps in watershed management
• After determining the priority of area based on main objective of the watershed
management program, certain steps are followed to accomplish the works. These steps are:
• Surveys and collection of information,
• Analysis of information and study of problems,
• Development of alternative solution of the problems,
• Selection of the best solution,
• Preparation of work plan,
• Execution of works, and
• Protection and improvement of works.
Watershed management
Phases of watershed management
• Recognition phase
• Under this phase, the recognition of watershed problems, their probable causes and development of
alternatives for them are described.
• These can be carried out by conducting several surveys, given as:
• Soil survey,
• Water resources survey
• Land capability survey
• Agronomic survey
• Forest land survey
• Engineering survey
• Socio-economic survey
• Restoration phase
• This phase covers the tasks of selection of best solutions and their applications for watershed
management.
• Comes after recognition phase, in which treatment measures are applied to the critical areas for the
recognized problems, identified earlier during the recognition phase.
Watershed management
Phases of watershed management
• Execution Phase
• It is the phase in which general health of the watershed is taken care off and its
normal working is also ensured.
• In addition, the protection of watershed against all those factors which cause
deterioration is also carried out under this management phase
• Improvement phase
• Under this phase, the overall improvement made during management of watershed are
evaluated for all the lands covered.
• Attention is also given to make improvements on agricultural land, forest land, forage
production, pasture and socio-economic status of the people
Integrated watershed management approach
• Integrated watershed management is a multi-disciplinary and multi-departmental
programs.
• It involves agencies dealing with agriculture, forest, animal husbandry, fisheries, soil
conservation, road, dams, irrigation, drainage and buildings.
• In addition to these infrastructural facilities like communication, marketing, banking,
cooperatives, panchayats, social and voluntary organizations are needed.
• The agencies involved in extension services and supply of inputs have to help and
coordinate watershed development works.
• An active and timely cooperation and coordination among the agencies/departments are
essential for planning, execution and maintenance of watershed development program.
• A department or agency cannot accomplish a work of watershed management
independently, proper coordination and cooperation are needed from other related
department/agency.
Requirements of successful watershed management program
• For successful implementation of a watershed management program, on large scale there are
three main pre-requisites, i.e.
• Availability of technology package,
• Availability of appropriate infrastructure to implement the program,
• Presence of congenial social and political environment.
• The available infrastructure can be simplified into money, men and material.
• The money required for watershed management should be adequate but the success of the
program depends on well trained man power and materials.
• The planning of manpower and materials should be done simultaneously with program
planning.
• The watershed development requires general awareness and dedication in the society.
• The political and social environment should be favorable for watershed management
program.
Key challenges for watershed management
• From an organizational or a managerial point of view, there are some key challenges for
watershed management:
• Impacts of management interventions are difficult to assess
• Areas of decision making are not identical with watersheds
• Watershed management has to face competition and even conflict
• Global climate change