Getting to know your local watershed

Let's start basic:

What is a watershed? A watershed is an area of land that drains into a lake or river. As rainwater and melting snow run downhill, they carry sediment and other materials into our streams, lakes, wetlands and groundwater.

We all live in a watershed. Watersheds are the places we call home, where we work and where we play. Everyone relies on water and other natural resources to exist. What you and others do on the land impacts the quality and quantity of water and our other natural resources.

Why is your watershed important? Healthy watersheds are vital for a healthy environment and economy. Our watersheds provide water for drinking, irrigation and industry. Many people also enjoy lakes and streams for their beauty and for boating, fishing and swimming. Wildlife also need healthy watersheds for food and shelter.

But, does it work? Managing the water and other natural resources is an effective and efficient way to sustain the local economy and environmental health. Scientists and leaders now recognize the best way to protect the vital natural resources is to understand and manage them on a watershed basis. Everything that is done in a watershed affects the watershed's system.

Pollutants and water quality. In the past, most water quality problems were traced to the most obvious cause ... point-source pollution. This means the problem can be traced to a specific location such as a pipe or disposal site. Technical and regulatory methods have been used to detect and control these problems. Much progress has been made in preventing further water quality problems from point sources.

However, water quality problems from nonpoint-source pollution are more difficult to isolate and control. These sources are often hard to identify and difficult to measure. This type of pollution results from a wide variety of activities over a wide area.

Nonpoint-source pollutants are in the water that runs off crop or forest land. Others include failing septic systems, parking lots, construction sites, irrigation systems and drainage systems. It can even result from automobile exhaust getting in the atmosphere and falling back to earth in the rain.

Where to start. Understanding your watershed is the first step in protecting the water and other natural resources. A partnership among all who live, work or play in the watershed can help identify concerns, educate those involved and encourage them to take action. Watershed management plans focus on prevention of pollution. This is easier and more inexpensive than trying to cleanup a watershed after the fact.

Understanding your watershed.

The watershed where you live is a dynamic and unique place. It is a complex web of natural resources — soil, water, air, plants and animals. Yet, everyday activities can impact these resources, ultimately impacting our well-being and economic livelihood.

Unique features.

Size. One important feature is the size of the watershed. Some (like the Mississippi River basin) are very large and include many smaller river basins or watersheds. These smaller watersheds can be subdivided into even smaller areas. The ideal size for a voluntary partnership to work with is 50,000 acres or less. At this size your group will likely see water quality improvements sooner than in larger areas. Of course, in regions of the United States where ranchers, foresters and others manage large tracts of land, you may want to work with a much larger watershed.

Boundary, the geographic boundary to be more specific, of the watershed is formed by a ridge or high area from which water drains either toward or away from your watershed.

Topography (terrain) is another important feature. How flat or steep the land is impacts how fast water drains. The faster the drainage, the more potential for flooding and increased soil erosion.

Soil type is also important. For example, sandy soils allow the ground to soak up water faster. This reduces surface runoff, but can affect ground water. Clay soils, on the other hand, are tighter and do not allow as much water infiltration. This can lead to more runoff and soil erosion.

Other features. Whether your watershed drains into a stream or lake, the area nearest the water has the greatest effect on water quality. This is why buffers, wildlife habitat, wetlands and riparian areas are important aspects of your watershed.

Both buffers and wetlands utilize nutrients, tie up sediment and expose bacteria to the sun. This helps improve water quality. Wetlands also act as natural sponges to absorb peak flows of water and reduce flooding. Many fish and wildlife species rely on wetlands for rearing their young, and for food and shelter.

Employment trends.

These trends can be critical. For instance, are people living in one and working in a different watershed? Are jobs and family incomes dependent on the watershed? Do people understand how various jobs depend on it? Is employment stable? Are jobs transient?

Attitude trends.

Most people rely on their beliefs and experiences, rather than on scientific data, to shape their attitudes. This means that when their perceptions don't match reality, people react to their perceptions, not reality.

Although experts disagree, most people perceive there is more risk today than in the past. In addition, more people are striving for a risk-free world. These people often resist making trade-offs, particularly those between the economy and the environment.

Many people are more concerned about some perceived risks than others (regardless of the potential). For instance, involuntary risks (like secondhand smoke) often bring a higher level of concern than voluntary risks (like smoking).

Land use trends.

All activities within the watershed have an impact on its natural resources. Cities, homes, roads and factories modify the watershed and affect its natural resources. Farming, recreation, mining, construction and forestry can also significantly affect a watershed. this is why it's important to note land use trends. Are the number of families increasing. What type of housing? How much of the watershed is impervious? What was it like ten years ago? Twenty? Have property values changed? What about industrial parks? Highways? Parks? The list will be unique to your watershed.

Natural resource uses.

You may also find natural resources are used in many different ways in your watershed.

Water can be used by municipalities and local industries. Farms also rely on water for irrigation and livestock. Many people enjoy water for recreational uses like fishing, swimming and boating. So the water quality and quantity are important to the watershed's stakeholders.

Air quality, wildlife, soil quality and the other natural resources can also be important aspects of watershed management.

Economic trends.

A sound local economy is also important to everyone with a stake in the watershed. That's why it's important to consider the local economy and ways to sustain or improve it through successful watershed management. Ask your group how the natural resources within the watershed can affect the local economy.

Stakeholder use trends.

To fully understand your watershed you'll also need to understand how it's used by the people who live, work and play there. These are the stakeholders who need to be involved in the planning and implementing process. For this reason, they'll need to be a part of the watershed partnership.

Why build a partnership?

By using a partnership approach you'll find greater local initiative, responsiveness, and control. Partnerships can build a climate of cooperation and focus on solutions. A plan developed by a local partnership is often more effective and efficient than other methods such as broad sweeping regulations. The result is the improved environmental and economic health of your watershed.

Effective watershed management planning relies on an effective partnership that includes representatives of all stakeholders and works cooperatively toward a common goal.

As you look around your community, you'll find many people who will want to be involved in developing a plan to protect your watershed. The guide Building Local Partnerships describes how partners can contribute and outlines strategies for building local watershed partnerships.

Successful partnerships start with partners understanding each others' current beliefs about the issues. What people believe to be real is real in its consequences. Understanding each others' beliefs will help your efforts.

Conflicts among partners can also influence the effectiveness and fairness of the management plan. The Managing Conflict and Negotiation guide describes how you can effectively manage conflicts and work toward consensus.

You're not alone.

The good news is that you are not alone in your concern for watershed protection. More than a thousand partnerships have formed across the United States. Many more are now active in Canada, Europe, South America, China and many other countries. And, a good number of these partnerships are successfully managing their watersheds.

By using the National Watershed Network you can identify a watershed coordinator who is already coordinating a partnership addressing similar issues...maybe even in your area. Ask he/she to help you out by providing a word or two of advice.

Help is just around the bend...or across town...or even across the street. As you get started, you'll find many potential partners who will want to participate every step of the way. Often this includes some folks you really didn't expect to be interested in protecting their watershed...and their own destiny.

Just ask.

Acknowledgments
The author acknowledges the following sources of information that were used in developing this guide. You may also find these publications helpful. There may be fees for these publications.

Clean Water in Your Watershed: A Citizen’s Guide to Watershed Protection. Terrene Institute Tel: 202-833-8317
Evaluation of the Experimental Rural Clean Water Program — Project Report. North Carolina State University. Tel: 919-515-3723.
Managing Nonpoint Pollution: An Action Plan for Puget Sound Watersheds. Puget Sound Water Quality Authority Tel: 206-464-7320
Public Perception and Communication of Risk. North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Tel: 919-515-1676

Last Update: 03/27/00