EVALUATION OF TECHNICAL FEASIBLITY OF PHYSICALSOILANDWATER CONSERVATION PRACTICES: THE CASE OFBUREDISTRICT, ILU ABA BORA ZONE, SOUTH WESTERNETHIOPIA

Soil and water resources conservation and management is important for the welfare of thepeople. Community-based Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) practices have beenadoptedin Ethiopia since 1991 for restoration of the degraded landscape. The main objective of thisstudy is to Evaluate Technical Feasibility of Physical Soil And Water conservation Practices:The Case of Bure District, Ilu Aba Bora Zone, Southwestern Ethiopia. Cross-sectional surveyresearch design was used to carry out this study. Multi-stage sampling procedures wasemployed to get relevant data from the respondents. In the first stage, Bure District wasselected purposively out of 14 Districts in the Zone. In the second stage representativeof watersheds (lowest administration) from respective District was be selected purposivelythrough due to the watershed’s area coverage and dominance of conservation practices. Physical soil and water conservation measures with ultimate intention of reducing sever soil erosion and its associated impact had been implemented for the last four decades in southernEthiopia. Yet, so far the technical viability of the implemented structures weren't studied. The data was collected by field observation and direct measurement of the implementedstructures. Moreover, focused group discussion and key informant interviewwas done. Descriptive statistics was used for data analysis. The results were compared with standards. The collected data were presented in Table and Figures. The study result showed that Level soil bund and Check dam were implemented in communal land by public participation, whileLevel soil bunds and bench terrace were found in private land. The implemented structureswere appropriate for the catchment, while the layouts of most implemented structures werenot as the standard. The regular maintenance and management practices were also minimal. As the result, technically deficient SWC measures were found as cause of soil erosionandwitnessed that construction of SWC structure in field is not an end means by itself foref ective controlling of soil erosion. To be ef ective the implemented SWC structures hastobe appropriate for the area and technically be sound. Regular maintenance and management of the structure after implementation is also vital to achieve its very inception objective.