CONTOUR TRENCHS

&
BOULDER DAM

Presented by:

DR. TEJRAM NAYAK

National Institute of Hydrology
Ganga Plains South Regional Centre
Bhopal (M.P.)

trnnca@gmail.com
 Contour Trenches
(lykax [karh)
• At its simplest, contour trench construction is an extension of the
practice of plowing fields at a right angle to the slope. Contour trenches
are ditches dug along a hillside in such a way that they follow a contour
and run perpendicular to the flow of water. The soil excavated from the
ditch is used to form a berm (a narrow shelf) on the downhill edge of the
ditch. The berm can be planted with permanent vegetation (native
grasses, legumes) to stabilize the soil and for the roots and foliage in
order to trap any sediment that would overflow from the trench in heavy
rainfall events.
• Contour trenches are not irrigation channels, rather they are used to
slow down and attract runoff water, which then infiltrates into the soil.
Small scale contour trenches can also be used within field level. The
water that infiltrates can be used as soil moisture for crops cultivated
after a rainfall event, directly for pumped irrigation, or extracted from
shallow wells in the area.
 Suitable Conditions
• Locate trenches in natural runoff areas, but not on slopes over
10%.
• Soil in vicinity needs to have sufficient infiltration capacity and
potential sub-surface storage capacity.
• In areas which have very heavy storms it may be dangerous to
prevent the water completely from flowing down a slope.
Build waterways or drains at a slight angle (1⁄2 degree - 1
degree) so that excess water is safely channeled away.
 Advantages
• Facilitates recharge into surrounding ground which in turn
improves soil moisture
• Improves agricultural productivity and grazing potential as
well as increases water for livestock and therefore mitigates
against drought
• Reduces soil erosion
• Can assist recharge of shallow wells
• Can reduce salinity in groundwater
• Prevents pollutants from draining into water bodies
• Gully plugs: no trench design required, just uses existing
gully drainage pattern
 Disadvantages
• Recharge of groundwater is not certain according to local sub-
surface conditions (geological layers blocking infiltration)
• Trenches silt up and will need maintenance
• Lack of understanding by landowners about advantages of
contour trenches; difficult to convince them during the first
year to give their land for trench construction
• Can increase land fragmentation
• Costly and in-depth analysis of hydrology/runoff gullies
• Recharge capacity/permeability information is needed, which
is difficult to get if no in-depth rainfall data is available
• Expensive cost of implementation where mechanical
excavating machinery is used
 daVwj [karh ¼VªsUp½
dgka cuk;s \
• ewyr% fjpkftZx tksu Åijh ifj{ks=] mPp <ky okys
{ks=
dSls cuk;s \
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[kksndj drkj ds #i esa cukbZ tkrh gSA bUgs lac) ;k
drkj c) ;k yxkrkj daVwj [karh dgk tkrk gSA
• tc [karh;k [kaMhr drkjks esa gksrh gS ;kuh ,d [ksrh
nwljh lkekukarj [ksrh ds drkj esa ;k lh/k esa u
gksdj ,d nwljs ls vyx jgrh gSA rc mls vlEC) ;k
[kaMhr [karh;ka dgrs gSA
 mi;ksx
• cjlkr ds cgrs ikuh ls igkM+h ds <+ky ;k
eSnkuh {ks= esa gksus okys feV~Vh dVko
dks jksduk
• igkM+h ls cgrs ikuh dh xfr esa vojks/k
mRiUUk rkfd unh ukyks esa ;g ikuh
/khjs&/khjs igqWps rFkk vpkud ck<+ vkuk
tSlh fLFkfr ls crk tk ldsA
• cjlkr dk ikuh [kafr;ks esa bdV~Bk dj Hkwfe ds
vUnj fjlus ls Hkwty Lrj esa o`f) gksxhA
 [kksndj fudkyh feV~Vh dk D;k djas\
• [karh [kksnrs le; fudyus okyh feV~Vh dks
[ksrh ds Åijh fn’kk esaa u Mkyrs gq;s mls <ky
okyh ;kuh fupyh txg ij [ksrh ls 50 ls-eh- dh
nwjh ij ,sls Mkys ftlls og ,d caf/k;k dk #i ys
ysA bl ij ?kkl ;k vU; ouLifr ds cht Mkydj
ikS/jksi,k fd;k tk ldrk gSA iRFkj miyC/k gksus
dh fLFkfr esa Hkh fd;k tk ldrk gSA
 [karh dk vkdkj D;k gks\
• igkMh ds <ky ij [karh dk vkdkj fuHkZj djrk
gS bUgs U ;k V vkdkj esa cuk;k tk ldrk gS
budh yackbZ] pkSMkbZ] xgjkbZ rFkk ,d
nwljs ls nwjh ckcr LFkuh; ifjfLFkfr;ks dks
n`f"Vxr fu.kZ; fy;k tk ldrk gSA ekSVs rkSj ij
24 ?kaVs esa vf/kdre fdruh o"kkZ gksrh gS
rFkk igkM+h dk {ks=Qy D;k gS ;g irk dj
oSKkfud rjhds ls bldk fu;kstu Hkh laHko gSA
 Trench Dimensions
ofVZdy baVoZy
V.I = 0.305 (X.5+Y)
V.I. ehVj esa (in meters)
S <ky] izfr’kr esa (slope in %)
X o"kkZ xq.kkad (rainfall foctor)
Y e`nk ds izdkj o vkPNknu dk xq.kkad
(soil type and canary factor)
 o"kkZ dk xq.kkad
o"kkZ mm X dk eku
625 mm ls de 0-85
625 ls 875 mm 0-60
875 mm ls vf/kd 0-40
 e`nk ,oa vkPNknu xq.kkad
e`nk dh ikjxE;rk okuLifrd Y dk
vkPNknu eku
de ¼Hkkjh de 1-00
e`nk½
vkSlr ,oa mlj vPNk 2-00
Ek/;e e/;e
Horizontal Interval (H.I)
1-50

H. I. = (100 * V. I.) / S
 lykax (Contour) VªsaPk ds lsD’ku dk fu/kkZj.k

VªsaPk lsD’ku fu/kkZfjr djus ds fy, fuEu x.kuk, vko’;d gS&

Area drained (between two trenches) = A
A = (Average width between two trenches * Length of Trench)
Finding out Runoff: Q
Using Rational Formula Q = (CIA/360)
Where,
Q = Peak rate of runoff in cumecs for the given frequency of
rainfall.
C = Rational runoff coefficient having values ranging from zero to
one depending upon watershed conditions.
I = Intensity of rain fall (in mm per hour for design frequency
and for duration equal to time of concentration.
A = Catchment area for trench.
VªsaPk ds ifjek.k (Dimension) fuEu lw= ls fu/kkZfjr
fd, tkrs gS&
Q = (W/100 * D/100) * L
Where
Q = Depth of Runoff from catchment area of trench
in Cm.
W = Width of trench in cm
D = Depth of trench in cm
L = horizontal Interval in meters
lkekU;r;k 30 *30 ls 50*50 cm vkdkj ds VªsaPk fufeZr
fd, tkrs gS ;fn leyackdkj VªsaPk fufeZr djuk gks rks
lkbM Lyksi 1%1 j[kk tkosA
fopyunkj (Staggered) VªsaPk ds lsD’ku dk fu/kkZj.k
%&
izdj.k 1] tc LVsxMZ VªsaPk dh yackbZ ds cjkcj varjky
j[kk tk jgk gks&
Q = (W/100) * (D/100) * (L) lw= viuk;k tkosA
izdj.k 2] tc LVsxMZ VªsaPk dh yackbZ ds cjkcj varjky
u j[kk tk jgk gks&
Q = (W/100) * (D/100) * (L) * (1+X/L), lw= viuk;k
tkosA ;gk¡
X = gap betbeen trenches
L = Length of the trench gSaA
• VªsaPk dh [kqnkbZ ls fudyh feÍh MkmuLVªhe
esa 20 lsaVhehVj ds ckgj 10 lsaVhehVj ds ys;j
esa /kqjeqV ls dqVkbZ dj ca/kh cukosA
• 25% vf/kd vksj 10% ls de <ky okys {ks= esa
daVwj Vªsafpax u djasA
• ;fn ?kkl vPNh gks rks daVwj Vªsafpax u djsa A
VªsaPk fuekZ.k djkrs le; isMksa dh tMs u dkVs
A VªsaPk es o`{kkjksi.k u djsaA
• [kksnh xbZ feV`Vh <ky dh fn’kk esa VªsaPk ds
uhps dh vksj MkysaA
• VªsaPk dk vkdkj vk;rkdkj vFkok leyac prqHkqZt
(Trapezium) gks] LFkkuh; e`nk ds fy, tks mi;qDr
gks o LFkkuh; lk/kuks }kjk djk;k tk ldrk gks]
 Contour Trenching
Contour trenches are constructed on contours to detain
water and sediment transported by water. Contour
trenches are ditches dug along a hillside in such a way
that they follow a contour and run perpendicular to the
flow of water. The soil excavated from the ditch is used
to form a small bund on the downhill edge of the ditch.
The bund is planted with permanent vegetation (native
grasses, legumes) to stabilize the soil and for the roots
and foliage in order to trap any sediment that would
overflow from the trench in heavy rainfall events.
 Objectives
• Contour trenches are used to break up the slope
surface, to slow runoff and allow infiltration, and
to trap sediment. Rills are stopped by the
trenches.
• Trenches or terraces are often used in conjunction
with seeding. It improves soil moisture profile by
checking soil erosion.
• They can be constructed with machinery (deeper
trenches) or by hand (generally shallow).
• Width and depth vary with design storm, spacing,
soil type, and slope.
 Specifications
• Trenches can be continuous or interrupted
• The interrupted one can be in series or staggered
• Continuous one is used for moisture conservation
in low rainfall areas and require careful layout
• Intermittent trenches are adopted in high rainfall
areas.
• The trenches are to be constructed strictly on
contours irrespective of the category.
 Layout
• The size of the trench depends upon the soil's
depth.
• Normally 1,000 sq cm to 2,500 sq cm. in cross
section are adopted.
• The trench may be of 30 cm base and 30 cm top
width and square in cross section or it can be
trapezoidal with side slopes 1:1.
• Based on the quantum of rainfall to be retained, it
is possible to calculate the size and number of
trenches.
 Continuous Contour Trenches
• Continuous contour trenches (CCT) are the ones when
there is no break in their length and they can be 10 to
20 m long across the slope depending on the width of
the field.
• The cross section of the trench generally varies from
30 x 30 cm to 45 x 45 cm .
• They are constructed for moisture conservation in low
rainfall areas receiving storm of mild intensities.
• It has been observed that CCT are prone to breaching
if they are not constructed perfectly on contours
hence it demands high skill for construction.
Continuous Contour Trenches
Continuous Contour Trenches
 Staggered Contour Trenches
• In medium rainfall areas with highly dissected topography,
Staggered Contour Trenches are adopted.
• The length of the trenches is kept short around 2-3 m and the
spacing between the rows may vary from 3-5 m.
• The chances of breaches of SCT are less as compared to CCT.
• Over time, experience of watershed programs has shown that it is
better to stagger the digging of contour trenches. This is because it
has been found that invariably errors have been made in
contouring over long distances.
• If the contour trench is not level and by mistake sloped, then
water starts to flow from the high point to the low point, cutting a
path and increasing soil erosion.
• Therefore, instead of making trenches continuously, they should
be made in a staggered, discontinuous manner.
Staggered Contour Trenches
Staggered Contour Trenches
 Design of Contour Trenches
• Design of contour trenches involve the
determination of cross sectional area and
spacing of trenches to collect desired amount
of runoff generated from the catchment area.
 Determination of direct runoff volume

• Trenches are designed to hold part of the runoff

expected from a storm of 4 years recurrence interval
and 6 hr duration.
• Trenches are designed to store 60-70 % of runoff.
• The volume of run-off from the design storm is
computed by the following formula.
Q=C×R×A
Where, C = runoff coefficient,
R = quantum of daily rainfall
A = catchment area for that particular structure
 Determination of cross sectional area and
volume of trench
• The cross section of trench can be of square,
rectangle, trapezoidal or triangular V-shape.
• The size of trenches depends upon the soil depth
available at site.
• In relatively deeper soils, trench depth is generally
fixed at 40-50 cm while for shallow soil, trench
depth may reduce to about 15-20 cm.
• As far as length of trench is considered, shorter
lengths 3 to 7 m are adopted for convenience of
layout and construction.
 Determination of spacing
• Spacing is expressed in terms of horizontal and vertical
interval.
• Vertical interval is defined as the elevation difference
between the upper or lower edge of successive contour
trenches.
• Relation between the horizontal spacing of contour trenches,
runoff depth and dimension of trenches is given below:
H.I. =Cross sectional Area/Runoff depth= A/Q
Assuming trench to be rectangular, H.I. = W*D / 100 * Q
Where, H.I. = Horizontal spacing
W = width of trench, cm
D = depth of trench, cm
Q = Runoff depth, cm
 Contour Trenches: DON'Ts
i. Do not make trenches on slopes higher than 25%. Instead
adopt vegetative measures
ii. Do not make trenches on slopes less than 10%. Instead
construct contour bunds
iii. Do not excavate trenches where there is already dense
vegetation
iv. Do not plant inside the trench
v. Do not excavate if roots of a tree are encountered
vi. Do not excavate trenches across large streams or drainage lines
vii. Do not start the lay-out of trenches from the shorter section.
Always begin from the longest section within the largest area of
uniform slope
THANKS