Technical and socio-economic assessment of watershed management

Nowadays Watershed degradation in many developing countries threatens the livelihood of millions of people and constrains the ability of countries to develop a healthy agricultural and natural resource base. Increasing populations of people and livestock, particularly in the steep, mountainous watersheds, are rapidly depleting the existing natural resource base because the soil and vegetation systems cannot support present levels of use. In a sense, the carrying capacity of these lands is being exceeded. As populations continue to rise, the pressures on forests, rangelands, and marginal agricultural lands lead to inappropriate cultivation practices, forest removal, and grazing intensities that, in the extreme case, leave a barren land that yields unwanted sediment and damaging floods to downstream communities. Recognizing the importance of upland areas conservation, especially in most of the developing countries where the economy is depending predominately on agriculture, watershed management has received over the last few decades an increasing attention from countries themselves as well as from concerned international and regional organizations.