Land and Watershed Management - Practices of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management - page 233

6.6.9.2 Challenges Associated with Community-Based Watershed
Management
Community-based watershed management is neither easy nor always effective at
protecting or restoring watershed functions. Some of the challenges to face in
adopting a community-based approach include the following:
(i) Watersheds may cover thousands of acres of public and privately owned
land. Developing even a basic understanding of how human activities affect
watershed functions is a major undertaking.
(ii) Some key stakeholders may lack the time, motivation, skills, or resources to
participate effectively throughout the management planning process.
(iii) Resource management professionals may be reluctant to give up their role as
experts and to share authority with lay persons regarding resource management
issues.
(iv) Conflicts between stakeholders over management goals and the means to
accomplishing those goals are inevitable, and resource management profes-
sionals are often ill-prepared to facilitate constructive dialogue to resolve these
conflicts.
(v) Community-based approaches require time and resources to generate inter-
est and to build relationships between stakeholders. Funding agencies and
stakeholders may grow impatient with the lack of observable outcomes.
6.6.9.3 Keys to Success of Community-Based Watershed Management
There is no easy formula for successful community-based watershed management.
However, experience from efforts around the globe suggests that several key factors,
such as those listed here, are common to many successful projects:
i. Involve stakeholders in the management planning process in a way that is mean-
ingful to them and that allows them to use their particular skills and knowledge
most effectively.
ii. Do not be discouraged if some stakeholders choose not to participate initially.
Begin by educating and informing key audiences about the values of the water-
shed to the community, the watershed management process, and specific actions
they can take to get involved.
iii. Determine the appropriate scale for addressing watershed problems. Actions
aimed at changing land-use practices are easiest to implement at the local level
and become more difficult to manage on a larger scale.
iv. View the watershed management plan as a starting point and not the end prod-
uct. Be prepared to adapt the plan as conditions change and groups learn from
their mistakes.
v. Make management decisions, when possible, based on a consensus of a broad
range of stakeholders. Efforts to resolve conflicts before management decisions
are made may bring dividends in the long run.