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Story: Irrigation and drainage

Graded banks

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Graded banks

One way of managing runoff on hill slopes is to put in graded banks that lead water away from gullies and other areas where water usually accumulates and forms wetlands. They can also reduce soil erosion. Graded banks are formed by ploughing a deep furrow on a slight gradient around a hill slope.

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Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: AANR 6329 41 K9,346

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How to cite this page

Terry Heiler, Irrigation and drainage – Drainage, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/19648/graded-banks (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Terry Heiler, published 1 March 2009.