Project funded
by theEU–DGEnvironment
L
andsurfacerelevant
forapplication
Artificial surface
Agriculture land
Forest and semi-natural areas
Wetlands
F
inancialcosts
(C
apital
,
operation
&
maintenance
)
Capital and maintenance costs vary significantly depending on the type and the
size of the polder. The capital cost for renaturalisation of the Altenheim polder
was M€28.
D
esign
Renaturalisation of polder areas can include the implementation of other mea-
sures such as wetland and floodplain restoration, natural bank stabilisation and
elimination of riverbank protection.
S
cale
Polders tended to be developed in the
lower reaches of large rivers with
large
upstream catchments
(more than
100km
2
).
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments (barriers) known as dikes that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection
with outside water other than through manually operated devices. Its re-naturalisation involves enhancing polders with
natural characteristics
, allowing better
water storage in watercourses inside the polder, as well as increased biodiversity.
Case studies: PoldermanagementnearAltenheim,Germany
HYDROMORPHOLOGY
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