Lecture 2

Watershed System

Watershed System
From a civil engineering perspective, the most
important subsystem is the watershed system.
The watershed system may be conceptualized as
a spatial subset of the earths ground surface
(lithospheric system). The watershed is simply
that area of land that contributes surface runoff
to a common point of interest.
Synonyms: watershed, drainage area, basin,
catchment

Watershed Delineation
A watershed can be delineated using a
topographic map.
Each contour line on a topographic map
represents a ground elevation or vertical distance
above a reference point such as sea level.
All points along any one contour line are at the
same elevation.
If a hill is more or less circular then the map will
show it as a series of more or less concentric
circles (contour lines).