Soil and Water Conservation is about caring for the ground that grows our food and the water we all need. You will learn how soil forms, how water moves, and what people do to protect both. Then you'll get your hands dirty on real conservation projects.
Why it's worth it
Everything you eat started in a few inches of soil, and every glass of water you drink fell as rain somewhere upstream. Soil and Water Conservation shows you how those resources get used up or washed away, and what farmers, foresters, and towns do to protect them. You'll learn to read a landscape, see erosion where others don't, and do real projects that keep a stream cleaner or a hillside in place.
Start this week
- After the next rain, walk around your yard, school, or a park with a parent and look for places where water carried soil away.
- Ask your Scoutmaster for the name of a Soil and Water Conservation counselor, and send them a short message with a parent copied to set up a first meeting.
- Use an online map to find which creek or river your neighborhood drains into, and follow it downstream as far as you can.
- Have a parent help you look up your county's soil and water conservation district and see what projects or events it runs.
Stay safe
- Near streams and ponds, stay on stable ground with a buddy and an adult, and wear gloves when picking up trash.
Requirements · 7
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab).
- Requirement 1
Soil basics
Tips for this section: Dig a small hole in your yard or a park with permission and look at the layers. Talk about what makes soil healthy.
Example for this section: Fill a clear jar about a third full of soil, add water, shake it, and let it settle overnight. You'll see layers of sand, silt, and clay. Use it to explain how soil forms and what makes it good for plants.
- Requirement 1a
Explain what soil is and how it forms
- Requirement 1b
Describe three kinds of soil and how they differ from each other
- Requirement 1c
Name the three main nutrients plants get from fertile soil and explain how they can be replaced once used up
- Requirement 2
Soil erosion
Tips for this section: Look for erosion on a hillside or near a stream after a rain, and sketch what you see.
Example for this section: Illustrate two kinds of erosion you can find nearby: sheet erosion on a bare patch of dirt, gully erosion on a steep path, or streambank erosion where roots are exposed. Sketch each and label the cause.
- Requirement 2a
Define soil erosion
- Requirement 2b
Explain why soil erosion matters and how it affects you
- Requirement 2c
Name and describe three kinds of soil erosion
- Requirement 2d
Photograph or draw two kinds of soil erosion
- Requirement 3
Conservation practices
Tips for this section: Find examples like cover crops or plantings along a stream, then draw three practices.
Example for this section: Draw three practices and explain how each one works: cover crops that hold soil in winter, grass strips along a stream, and terraces or contour farming on a hillside.
- Requirement 3a
Explain what conservation practices are
- Requirement 3b
Describe what three kinds of erosion-control practices do and how they work
- Requirement 3c
Take photos or make drawings of three different erosion-control methods
- Requirement 4
Watersheds, river basins, and aquifers
Tips for this section: Use an online or paper map to trace where rain in your town flows and which river it joins.
Example for this section: On a topographic (contour) map of your area, follow the contour lines to outline the smallest watershed you can find, like the land draining into one small creek. Then outline the larger watershed it flows into, and trace that river downstream to see which river basin it belongs to.
- Requirement 4a
Explain what a watershed is
- Requirement 4b
On a contour map, outline the smallest watershed you can find
- Requirement 4c
On the same map, outline as far as it allows the next larger watershed that contains the smallest one
- Requirement 4d
Explain what a river basin is and why everyone living in one should care about how its land and water are used
- Requirement 4e
Explain what an aquifer is and why communities may depend on one
- Requirement 5
Water and soil
Tips for this section: Draw the water cycle on a poster and try a simple demo, like a jar with water and soil.
- Requirement 5a
Draw the hydrologic (water) cycle
- Requirement 5b
Show at least two ways water behaves with soil, choosing from capillary action, evaporation, percolation, precipitation, and transpiration
- Requirement 5c
Explain how removing vegetation changes the way water runs off a watershed
- Requirement 5d
Explain how the ways forests, rangeland, and farmland are used affect the supply of usable water
- Requirement 5e
Explain how industry's use of water affects the water supply
- Requirement 6
Water pollution and treatment
Tips for this section: Visit or learn about your local wastewater plant to see how water is cleaned before it returns to nature.
Example for this section: Explain where water goes after it leaves your sink or a storm drain, and how a wastewater plant settles solids, uses bacteria to break down waste, and disinfects water before releasing it.
- Requirement 6a
Explain what water pollution means
- Requirement 6b
Describe common sources of water pollution and the effects of each
- Requirement 6c
Explain biochemical oxygen demand, primary water treatment, and secondary waste treatment
- Requirement 6d
Draw a diagram showing how complete waste treatment works
- Requirement 7
Conservation projects and visits. Choose 2 of 6
Tips for this section: Ask a conservation district or park ranger about projects you can help with or places to visit.
Example for this section: Your two could be planting 100 native trees and shrubs along a creek with a conservation group, and visiting two places, like a farm that uses no-till planting and your town's drinking water plant, then writing your report on the conservation practices you saw.
- Requirement 7a
Visit TWO of the places below, then write a report (over 500 words) on the soil, water, and energy conservation practices you observed. Choose 2 of 9
- Requirement 7a1
An agricultural experiment
- Requirement 7a2
A managed forest, woodlot, range, or pasture
- Requirement 7a3
A wildlife refuge or an area managed for fish or game
- Requirement 7a4
A farm or ranch managed for conservation
- Requirement 7a5
A managed watershed
- Requirement 7a6
A waste-treatment plant
- Requirement 7a7
A public drinking water treatment plant
- Requirement 7a8
An installation where industry uses water
- Requirement 7a9
A desalination plant
- Requirement 7b
Plant 100 trees, shrubs, and/or vines for a worthwhile purpose
- Requirement 7c
Seed at least one-fifth of an acre with suitable grasses or legumes (alone or mixed) for a useful conservation purpose
- Requirement 7d
Study a soil survey report and describe its contents. On tracing paper, copy one of its soil maps in pen, outline an area with three or more soil types, and list each by full name and map symbol
- Requirement 7e
List places near you (neighborhood, camp, school grounds, or park) with erosion, sedimentation, or pollution problems, and describe how individuals or groups could fix them
- Requirement 7f
Do another soil and water conservation project your counselor approves
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
A wastewater or drinking water treatment plant
You'll see the tanks and filters that clean water, and staff can explain each step.
How: Have a leader call the city or utility and ask for a group tour. Ask about age limits and closed-toe shoe rules.
A farm that uses conservation practices
Farmers can show you cover crops, buffer strips, or terraces in the field and explain why they use them.
How: Ask your conservation district or extension office to suggest a farm that welcomes youth visits, and go with your patrol and leaders.
A stream cleanup or restoration day
Hands-on work lets you see how plantings and erosion control protect a stream.
How: Have a leader contact a watershed group, park, or conservation district about upcoming volunteer days for youth.
Where it can lead
- Soil conservationistHelps farmers and landowners protect soil and water, often with the USDA.
- HydrologistStudies how water moves through land, rivers, and aquifers.
- Water treatment plant operatorRuns the systems that clean drinking water and wastewater; often a certified trade.
- Farmer or ranch managerUses conservation every day to keep land productive.
- Environmental engineerDesigns systems that control runoff and clean up polluted water.
Ask yourself
- Where did you notice erosion or pollution that you had walked past before without seeing?
- Which conservation practice surprised you the most, and why?
- What do you or your family do that affects water downstream?
- What was the most satisfying part of your conservation project?
- What's one change you could make at home or school to protect soil or water?
Good questions to ask a conservation district staff member or farmer
- What is the biggest soil or water problem in our county right now?
- How do you convince landowners to try a new conservation practice?
- What projects could a Scout troop help with here?
- How has the land around here changed over the years?
- What training did you need for your job?
Helpful reads
- Earning a merit badge, step by step, From picking a badge to getting the final signature: how to find a counselor, set up meetings safely, work the requirements, and keep your progress., Youth · Families · 6 min read
- Contacting counselors, experts, and organizations, Email and phone scripts, who to ask for, how to follow up, and how to say thanks, with a parent copied every time., Youth · Families · 7 min read
- Choosing your next merit badge, How to pick a badge you'll actually finish: start with what you care about, balance Eagle-required and just-for-fun badges, and make the most of camp., Youth · Families · 6 min read
For leaders & parents
- Contact your local soil and water conservation district for speakers or service projects.
- Combine this badge with a stream cleanup or tree-planting service day.
People & places that can help
- Merit badge counselor — Talk with them early; they can explain what's expected.
- Natural Resources Conservation Service (opens in a new tab) — Information about soil and water conservation.
- Local soil and water conservation district — Can suggest projects and site visits.
- U.S. Geological Survey (opens in a new tab) — Maps and facts about water and watersheds.
- How's My Waterway (EPA) (opens in a new tab) — Look up the streams and lakes near you and how healthy they are.
- USGS Water Science School (opens in a new tab) — Clear explanations of the water cycle, watersheds, and water quality.
- National Association of Conservation Districts (opens in a new tab) — Find your local conservation district and the work it does.
Pairs well with
Helps you earn
Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.