Land and Watershed Management - Practices of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management - page 235

Some other measures/techniques useful in watershed management are
- broad bed and furrow (BBF) system as a solution to waterlogging in vertisols.
- adopting a successful watershed and demonstrating the benefits of integrated
watershed management in terms of increased crop yields, reduced use of pesti-
cides and chemical fertilizers, increased ground water levels and conserving water
and soil.
- local tools for protecting wetlands.
- awareness on the direct and indirect impacts of urbanization on wetlands.
- adapting watershed tools to protect wetlands.
6.6.11 Strategies for Sustainable Watershed Management
In the past, water resource, forestry, and agricultural projects were often developed
with little regard to watershed management and upstream-downstream linkages.
Furthermore, the role of local people and the importance of changing land use
practices by those people are critical factors in achieving successful programs.
Commonsense tells us that to develop sustainable programs, land and water must
be managed together and that an interdisciplinary approach is needed. Now the
question, “Are we moving in that direction?” There are some indicators that this
may be happening. People who are trained and educated in watershed management
are assuming leadership positions in many countries. Such movements indicate that
policies and institutions that support integrated watershed management are emerg-
ing. Furthermore, the emergence of citizen-based watershed organizations in the
United States and other countries recognizes on one hand, that a watershed manage-
ment approach is relevant, but on the other hand, existing governmental institutions
are not fulfilling the role of watershed management.
The following measures are also needed for sustainable watershed management:
(a) Interdisciplinary approaches to project design are needed that integrate the
technical and human dimensions of watershed management. This requires an
understanding of cultures and traditional land use practices. Watershed planning
has historically relied upon engineering and technical expertise but has been
deficient in socioeconomic aspects, resulting in less than optimal outcomes and
a diminished flow of benefits beyond the termination of projects.
(b) Socioeconomic research and participatory techniques need to be incorporated
early in the conceptual design and planning stages of projects. Without coinci-
dent local participation, top-down approaches alone often have inconsistent and
unpredicted results, even though they may be technologically sound. Bringing
in local participation, and socioeconomic specialists later on when problems
arise may be too late, places undue responsibility on those not responsible for
original project design. Participatory monitoring and evaluation methods should
be used throughout the project cycle.