Project funded
by theEU–DGEnvironment
L
andsurfacerelevant
forapplication
Artificial surface
Agriculture land
Forest and semi-natural areas
Wetlands
F
inancialcosts
(C
apital
,
operation
&
maintenance
)
Some publications mention total cost of €225 000 for 200 m length of banks
stabilised. However the measure is often implemented together with other measures,
hence not necessarily costed in isolation.
D
esign
The banks are usually steep, between 3:1 and 1.5:1. It is recommended that
local
materials
(soil and vegetation species) should be used, for long term sustaina-
bility and to allow re-establishment of natural exchanges between the river and
groundwater. The measure is often implemented along with floodplain restoration
and management and wetland restoration and management.
S
cale
This measure can be implemented on
any river with artificial banks, thus with
various catchment areas.
A riverbank may consist of natural and/or artificial terrain following the river flow. In the past, many artificial banks have been built with concrete or other types
of retention walls, therefore limiting river’s natural movements. This can lead to degradation of the river, increased river flows and velocities, increased erosion
and reduced biodiversity. Natural bank stabilisation involves
recovering its ecological components,
thus reversing such damages and allowing the bank
to be stabilised, as well as allowing the river to move more freely. Nature-based solutions such as bioengineering are preferable, but civil engineering approaches
may need to be used in case of strong hydrological constraints.
Case studies: natural bank stabilisationalong theOdelouca river, Portugal;Revitalizationof theupperDrauRiver inAustria
HYDROMORPHOLOGY
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