From Boulder to Bounty: Community-Led Water Conservation in Odisha
Normally the local streams/ nullahs dry up by February every year. However, with these structures coming up, a few water retention pockets were created along the streams that could retain water up to March-April.
The forested areas of Jujumura block in Odisha’s Sambalpur district have an abundance of local streams. A group of youth working in the area realised that water was a vital resource that needed to be saved wherever possible. I was privileged to be a part of the group.
We held discussions with local communities and experts and all stressed on constructing small check dams over the streams to save the water.
The deliberations led to the idea of erecting loose boulder structures (LBS) along the streams. Our efforts of putting up LBS to conserve the stream water for future use were done through ‘shramdan’ (a concept that requires the whole community to contribute its free labour to build a community asset).
LBS are crucial in drainage line treatments. They act as speed breakers, reducing the speed of water flow during heavy rains.
By slowing down the water, LBS help reduce soil erosion and prevent the loss of fertile soil, which is typically washed away during heavy rains. Additionally, LBS conserve water by creating points where water can be stored and recharged into the ground.
We erected 28 LBS at different locations in 16 streams using local materials and with complete people’s participation.
Besides storing water and recharging the local springs, the LBS initiative has developed a sense of solidarity and collective commitment among the local people. Through this process, the community has gained confidence in their collective strength and feels a sense of pride in contributing to the development of their village.
What are LBS?
The construction of LBS typically involves the use of boulders and sand. The structures are put up at designated places along streams that the people decide based on the effectiveness of the structure.
The structures that we have built have a width ranging from 3 feet to 7 feet and a length of 15 feet to 25 feet. The youths and community members took about one day to two days to put up a structure.
For each structure, we needed the involvement of about seven to sixteen community members including local youth, farmers, women, and members of the Vana Surakshya Samiti (VSS). The forest staff also supported us in our endeavour.
Multiple benefits
Even though the community members were motivated by us to build the LBS, they were not without doubts about the benefits of the assets. However, when the structures were completed and water started to be stored at these structures, the community realised their multiple benefits.
Normally the local streams/ nullahs dry up by February every year. However, with these structures coming up, a few water retention pockets were created along the streams that could retain water up to March-April.
The moisture content of the soil also increased. These are seasonal nullahs and people had never imagined such small structures could be so much beneficial.
Some of these LBS are located inside deep forest areas. Earlier, some animals strayed into the village ponds due to lack of waterbodies inside forests. Now, such incidents have reduced as the animals use the water stored at the LBS. Domestic animals that go for grazing near the forest areas also benefit out of these structures.
These benefits have become visible within one or two years of building the structures. In around eight villages surrounding the LBS on streams, people are now planning to start vegetable cultivation with the stored water.
We are happy that an initiative led by youths has started to reap so many benefits. This encourages us to take up more such local water conservation actions.
About author:
Pratap Kumar Deo, a development professional, is involved in grassroots community development initiatives, especially involving youths.
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This article is published under the ‘Youth Climate Journalist Support Programme on Commons’ as a voluntary collaborative effort between ‘Youth4Water’ campaign, Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) and the Bigwire under the ‘Promise Of Commons’ initiative.
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