An integrated framework for improving watershed management planning

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Sustainable Land Management
• Watershed Management

Background:

• Land degradation is a persistent global environmental issue, exacerbated by inadequate land use and management (LUM) planning.
• Current LUM initiatives often fail due to poor integration of ecological and socio-economic factors, lacking a comprehensive planning framework.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate an integrated framework for identifying, evaluating, and proposing LUM alternatives.
• The framework aims to incorporate ecological and socio-economic benefits for sustainable watershed resource management.

Main Methods:

• A six-component framework was developed: problem identification, solution identification, alternative formulation and modeling, cost-benefit analysis, stakeholder evaluation, and communication.
• A case study in the Aba Gerima watershed, Ethiopia, analyzed five LUM alternatives against a baseline using plot- and watershed-scale data (2015-2019).
• Key indicators analyzed included runoff, soil loss, soil organic carbon (SOC) stock, and land productivity.

Main Results:

• LUM alternatives demonstrated significant reductions in runoff (11-71%) and soil loss (66-95%).
• Substantial improvements were observed in soil organic carbon (SOC) stock (36-104%) and watershed-scale land productivity (48-134%).
• Stakeholder evaluation revealed divergent priorities, with land users favoring practices that did not alter existing land uses.

Conclusions:

• The developed integrated framework effectively identifies, evaluates, and proposes LUM alternatives for degraded watersheds.
• The framework facilitates decision-making in planning and implementing LUM practices, balancing ecological and socio-economic considerations.
• Stakeholder engagement is critical, highlighting the need to align proposed solutions with land user priorities for successful implementation.