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A conceptual framework for the analysis of sustainable watershed management projects

SUBHA VISHNUDAS¹, HUBERT. H. G. SAVENIJE^1,2 & PIETER VAN DER ZAAG^2,1

1 Water Resources Section, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 5048, 2600 GA, Delft, The Netherlands

s.vishnudas@tudelft.nl

2 UNESCO-IHE, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA, Delft, The Netherlands

Abstract This paper presents an analytical framework that helps in under­standing the different aspects and elements of sustainable watershed management and their interactions. For a watershed project to be sustainable, four groups of criteria should be considered related to natural resources, technology, institutions and economics, respectively. A suitable metaphor for these four elements is a chain of shackles, the chain being as strong as the weakest shackle. This framework has been illustrated with two case studies in Kerala, South India.

Key words conceptual framework; India; sustainability; watershed