Contour Bunding
Type: Technologies
Creation: 2015-08-10 06:52 Updated: 2019-06-05 12:44
Compilers: Shreedip Sigdel
Reviewers: David Streiff, Alexandra Gavilano
Country/ region/ locations where the Technology has been applied and which are covered by this assessment
- Country: Nepal
- Further specification of location (e.g. municipality, town, etc.), if relevant: Chitwan, Tanahu, Gorkha, Dhading and Makawanpur
- Map: View Map
Description of the SLM Technology
Short description of the Technology
A traditional low-cost method of soil conservation suitable for sloping land; it promotes water retention and helps prevent erosion.
Detailed description of the Technology
Contour bunding is a proven sustainable land management practice for marginal, sloping, and hilly land where the soil productivity is very low. It is widely adopted by the ethnic minorities of Nepal who practice the shifting cultivation system of farming. Over generations, they have successfully used this technology to control soil erosion, promote water retention, and increase crop production. It has a high probability of replication because it is simple to implement, is low cost, and makes the maximum use of local resources.
Purpose of the Technology: Farmers use a multi-step process to promote the formation of rough terraces along contour lines on sloping land. First the vegetation on the shifting cultivation plot (mostly fodder and forage trees and bushes) is cut down and the leaves and small twigs removed from the branches by slashing. All the material is left on the surface to dry. The leaves and twigs gradually decompose. After a few weeks, the remaining dry material is rolled into bundles and arranged along contour lines. The material is anchored with pegs, stones, and (where possible) tree stumps. This is the beginning of the contour bund. The farmers then incorporate the remaining leaf litter and decomposed organic matter into the soil between the bunds and plant crops. Over time, as the soil gradually deposits above each bund and is eroded below, rough terraces are formed. The process is labour intensive and farmers need to regularly check and maintain the bunds to allow the soil to collect.
Establishment / maintenance activities and inputs: Contour bunding is relatively easy to establish and maintain since it does not require external inputs and local unskilled labourers can make them using locally available woody materials. It is also both sustainable and ecofriendly since there are no external inputs and no organic matter is burned in the process.
The use of contour bunding is limited by the fact that it is labour intensive and that bunding cannot be implemented during the fallow period of the shifting cultivation cycle, thus it can only be applied on a plot for two years (the cultivation period of the shifting cultivation cycle).
Photos of the Technology
- 📷 BB Tamang
- 📷 BB Tamang