Country Living

Protecting against runoff and erosion

There are many reasons to protect lakes and rivers from runoff and erosion. The main reason is to keep sediment and excess nutrients out of our waterways. These nutrients contribute to the growth of aquatic plants.

Other benefits of protecting against runoff and erosion is to help you protect the health and value of your land and water features, and to help agricultural operators protect the health of their livestock and livelihood.

What are some ways to protect against runoff and erosion?

There are many ways landowners and agricultural operators can protect against runoff and erosion and these fall into a few broad categories:

Riparian Area Management

A riparian area is the land associated with the banks of a natural water course such as a stream, river, pond or lake. The benefits of a well-maintained, naturally vegetated riparian area include:

• Improved water quality
• Improved aquatic and wildlife habitats
• Reduced downstream flooding
• Improved livestock grazing
• Healthier environment
• Increased recreational opportunities

Some activities that help to protect and manage riparian areas include:

• Providing alternative water systems for livestock
• Establishing healthy buffer zones
• Fencing to keep livestock out of waterways and improve riparian areas
• Restoring native plant ranges
• Managing livestock grazing in upland areas
• Improved stream crossings for livestock and equipment
• Assessing riparian area health on a regular basis

Erosion Control

Some activities that help to prevent erosion include work in both riparian and non-riparian areas:

• Constructing contour terraces.
• Stabilizing gullies.
• Stabilizing water course banks.
• Constructing drop inlets.
• Enhancing filtration systems.
• Creating in-channel controls.
• Constructing sediment control basins.

Land Management for Soils at Risk

Some activities that help to protect and manage soils at risk include:

• Establishing forage or annual barriers for soils at risk (e.g. strip cropping, grassed waterways, perennial forages on severely erodible or saline soils).
• Managing livestock grazing in critical erosion areas.
• Using straw mulch to help establish permanent forage.
• Establishing non-harvested, non-grazed cover crops.
• Modifying equipment for inter-row seeding of cover crops (e.g. relay crops).
• Developing soil erosion and salinity control plans.

Nutrient Management

Some activities that help to prevent unwanted nutrients from contaminating drinking water sources include:

• Modifying agricultural equipment to improve manure application.
• Developing nutrient management plans.
• Improving manure storage and handling
• Improving barns, farmyards and horticultural facilities to prevent runoff
• Treating manure
• Managing agri-products and agri-waste

How will I know if there are runoff and erosion problems on my land?

Protecting soils means protecting future earnings, since most nutrients and organic matter is bound in the topsoil. Some ways to tell if there are runoff and erosion problems on your land include:

• Hilltops show sub-soil, often a lighter colour, where the crops don’t grow as well.
• Soil accumulates in the bottom of low-lying areas, such as valleys, and even smothers vegetation in extreme cases.
• Rills and gullies form on the land, especially during intense localized storms.
• Poor water quality in nearby lakes, rivers, streams or wells.
• Sediment in waterways.