E
cosystem
servicesdelivered
Provisioning
Regulation & maintenance
Cultural
Abiotic
C
ontribution
topolicyobjectives
Water Framework Directive
Floods Directive
Birds & Habitats Directive
2020 Biodiversity Strategy
P
otential
biophysicaleffects
Runoff
Reducing pollution
Soil conservation
Habitat
Climate Change
High
Low
Medium
None
Through improving the stability of banks, natural bank stabilisation increases the capacity of rivers to
store water
. Replacing concrete banks with natural vegetation also
generally increases the roughness of the bank and hence slows down river flow. Thereby, this measure can make a contribution to reducing flood risk.
An increased surface area of natural materials allows for increased natural filtration and biological pollutant decomposition, which contributes to increasing the capacity of the
river to naturally
purify the water
. Stabilising banks prevents river flow from eroding the river banks, although activating the typical hydromorphological processes can lead to
small scale erosion and sedimentation and the development of a broad and gently sloping bank profile. An increased sinuosity ratio and variations in river velocities, width and
depth lead to restoration of natural hydromorphological structures. These mechanisms contribute to
controlling erosion
, improving the status of physico-chemical and hydro-
morphology quality elements. By slowing down the flow and giving back its natural features to the river, natural bank stabilisation creates
aquatic and riparian habitats
,
thus potentially increasing fish populations and natural biomass production, improving the status of biology quality elements and preserving biodiversity. Replacing concrete banks
with natural materials and vegetation also improves the
aesthetic
value of the area.
