“The aim of the project is to create a win-win situation by addressing issues of water management and the prevention of flooding and combine these with the aspect of biodiversity which is preserved and enhanced by the floodplains”, explains Prof. Dr. Bernd Cyffka, head of the Floodplain Institute. He went on to say that, compared to purely technical flood protection measures, the renaturation of floodplains also offered the possibility of preserving biodiversity and laying the foundation for a larger number of species. The project intends to take a holistic perspective for the Danube: “If one country gets active, all neighboring states along the course of the river will benefit from the measures”, says Prof. Dr. Markus Disse (Chair of Hydrology and River Basin Management at the Technical University of Munich).
By using a consistent methodology, involved scientists seek to investigate the positive effects of floodplains that are still in existence and determine which potential could be exploited in currently dry floodplains which have been altered by human interference (e.g. through river regulation). At the end of the project, there will be a guidebook to support landscape planners in preserving and restoring floodplains in the Danube basin. The project’s pilot regions are located in Serbia, Romania, Slovenia, Hungary and the German-Slovenian border region. “For countries on the lower course of the river, experts working on the upper course of the river are very important contact persons for floodplain-related issues”, emphasizes Ministerialrat Dr. Klaus Arzet from the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection, which is an associated partner of the project. In the project implementation, the KU Floodplain Institute can fall back on its long-standing expertise gathered during the renaturation process of the Danube floodplains between Ingolstadt and Neuburg and in the context of international projects in China. “We have already built up a significant knowledge pool which we want to share with countries down the Danube”, says Cyffka. At the same time, the project offers the opportunity for in-depth exchange with experts in the respective regions.
Usually, renaturation projects have to bear in mind the perspectives of many different interest groups – neighboring communities, forest owners, fisheries associations or agricultural holdings. This is why the KU Floodplain Institute has decided to carry out stakeholder analyzes in order to be able to estimate so-called ecosystem services of floodplains. These are effects that floodplains can have on humans and nature – for example serving as habitat for plants and animals, as recreational area, filter for pollutants or by contributing to flood protection. In a second step, the different requirements to the floodplains ecosystem will be evaluated and shall serve as a basis for a cost-benefit analysis model. The model will then be part of a guideline for regions at the Danube presenting criteria and step-by-step guidance for implementing own renaturation measures. It also offers solutions for possible conflicts arising between different interest groups.
For further information on the project, please visit www.interreg-danube.eu/approved-projects/danube-floodplain
