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Watershed Info >
What is a Watershed?
A watershed is an area of land where all of the water draining off and beneath it goes into the same waterway whether a stream flow or ground water. Not only does water run into the streams and rivers from the surface of a watershed, but water also filters through the soil, and eventually drains into the same waterway.
John Wesley Powell, scientist geographer, put it best when he said that a watershed is:
"that area of land, a bounded hydrologic system, within which all living things are inextricably linked by their common water course and where, as humans settled, simple logic demanded that they become part of a community."
Example: A watershed can be as small as the roof of your house where water drains into the gutter and downspout and from there to the yard. The water then flows to a storm drain system or a stream and eventually to a river.
We all live in a watershed! Think of it as an interconnected system made up of land, water, plants, animals, people and all of their houses, driveways, roofs, etc.
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