The permaculture slogan for handling water is "stop, spread, and soak". A contour is at a right angle to runoff, so by digging a swale with a downhill berm you

The permaculture slogan for handling water is "stop, spread, and soak". A contour is at a right angle to runoff, so by digging a swale with a downhill berm you bring it to a halt. And yes, you can deliver water elsewhere by putting it on a 1-2% grade. You can get some more context on what I'm describing from this article, though it sounds like your swale might be shallower. https://permaculturenews.org/2015/07/24/how-to-build-a-swale-on-contour-successfully/ https://permaculturenews.org/2015/07/24/how-to-build-a-swale... If you do it, you might consider filling yours with wood chips for appearance, easy maintenance, extra filtration, and to encourage soil building.