Project funded
by theEU–DGEnvironment
L
andsurfacerelevant
forapplication
Artificial surface
Agriculture land
Forest and semi-natural areas
Wetlands
F
inancialcosts
(C
apital
,
operation
&
maintenance
)
Elimination of riverbank protection is generally implemented as a component of
more complex projects and thus included in wider budgets.
D
esign
Elimination of riverbank protection is mainly implemented in
downstream
reaches
of catchments with significant natural floodplain extent. It can be com-
bined with other measures such as natural bank stabilisation, wetland restoration,
floodplain reconnection and restoration, re-meandering and riparian buffer zones.
S
cale
This measure can be implemented on
any part of a river with riverbank pro-
tection.
Riverbank protection is an inert or living construction providing bank fixation. However riverbank protection is also an obstacle for the lateral connection of
the river, constraining the river channel and reducing or preventing connectivity to the floodplain. Eliminating river bank protection involves
removing all or
some parts of bank protection
, particularly inert protection, in order to enhance lateral connections, diversify flows and habitats, and also cap floods in
the mainstream. It is a prerequisite for many other measures like re-meandering or widening, as well as initiating later channel migration and dynamics.
HYDROMORPHOLOGY
Case studies:ÓrbigoRiver ecological status improvement, Spain; Fluvial andecosystem restorationof theArga-AragonRivers, Spain
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