Attaining Sustainable Urban Watersheds - Urban Watersheds: Geology, Contamination, and Sustainable Development - page 518

16.5 Summary and Conclusion
Sustainable outcomes in urbanized watersheds are not possible without significantly pre-
venting further land contamination and land degradation. Knowing how the land was
formed and how it functions as a landscape is critical to managing it properly, and this
principle underscores the value of geology and geological investigations in watershed
management. Managing the land properly will help reduce the pollution loads trans-
ported by eroded sediment and stormwater, and protect drinking water supplies in sur-
face water and aquifers.
The effective use of science alone cannot attain sustainable urban watersheds.
Comprehensive watershed management and the attainment of sustainable watersheds
also depend on the success of institutional reform. The mismatches between landscape
process and institutional forms will have to be resolved, and all levels of government, the
private sector, and the public will need to share a common vision.
Despite the daunting challenges, we must begin the journey. The framework presented
here is general and the details still need to be worked out. For instance, who comprises
the “watershed group” and what are their roles? Answers to these questions must emerge
through negotiations and hard work. The value of this framework lies in its specification of
ways to use scientifically acquired data to enable science-based landscape planning at dif-
ferent geographic scales. This is the first step to achieving sustainable urban watersheds.
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