Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

Definition and scope of soil conservation, cause of soil erosion, Mechanism of erosion, universal soil loss equation, soil erosion due to wind and its control, vegetation management, i.e., strip cropping, stubble mulching and other practices.

Types of soil erosion due to water- sheet erosion, rill erosion, gully erosion, sediment transport in channels, sediment deposition in reservoirs. Methods of soil erosion control: bounding and terracing on agriculture land for gully control, bench terraces, vegetated water ways, chute spillways, drop inlet spillways, check dams, river training works.

Biological methods of soil erosion control, grass land management, forest management. Soil quality management, drainage works, reclamation of salt affected soils. Water conservation: water harvesting, rainfall- run off relation, water storage in ponds, lakes, reservoirs and aquifers, groundwater recharge through wells, check dams and storage works.

filtration, seepage and evaporation losses, pollution/ contamination of water quality due to agricultural practices i.e., fertilizers and pesticides, self purification of surface water, sources of agricultural water pollution, pollutant dispersion in ground water.

Need of planned utilization of water resources, economics of water resources utilization. Flood plain zones management, modifying the flood, reducing susceptibility to damage, reducing the impact of flooding.