Waterbar

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A ridge or barrier placed across a trail or slope to divert water flow and reduce soil erosion
2. A constructed feature on paths designed to channel water away and prevent damage from runoff
3. An engineered obstruction crossing a track to redirect water and protect soil from washing away

Etymology: A waterbar is about as transparent as a compound gets: "water" plus "bar", where the bar is a barrier or ridge set across a path. The idea is a simple one. A low mound of earth, a strip of timber, or a shallow ridge is laid diagonally across a trail or track, so that rainwater running down the slope is caught and diverted off to the side instead of gouging a channel down the path's surface. The word works as a literal description of that structure. Trail builders and land managers use it for a feature that is deliberately engineered rather than something that happens by accident, which is why the name names both the material's job and its shape. Because the parts are so plain, the word needs little beyond them to be understood.