Vienna Industry Stream Event: River Restoration and Sustainable Development

Convenor: Michael Tritthart

Rapporteur: Miltiadis Gymnopoulos

Date: Tuesday, 22 August 2023

Sustainable development of rivers requires integrative management approaches, which combine state-of-the-art knowledge in hydrology, hydraulics, sediment transport, morphodynamics, ecology as well as social sciences. Rivers are subject to different stressors, from weather extremes due to climate change, to human use in terms of drinking water, hydropower generation, navigation or recreation, while at the same time serving as important ecological habitats. Adequate sustainable development concepts bridging the gap between these demands are found in many projects implemented recently, such as floodplain preservation and restoration, drought management concepts, side-channel reconnection, or removal of dams and other hard hydraulic structures to recreate habitats and re-establish a river continuum.

This session targets the exchange of practical experience among policymakers, river managers, engineering consultants and other stakeholders involved in the development and restoration of rivers. We aim to combine several short presentations of recent projects with a moderated discussion on lessons learned and ideas for the path forward.

Program Outline:

An integrative approach to meet ecological and navigational requirements on the Austrian Danube

Robert Tögel, viadonau

Irene Hollaus, Riocom

Optimizing river restoration for multiple goal achievements – results from the MERLIN project

Ellis Penning, Deltares

Restoring sediment transport and river morphodynamics downstream of dams

Kamal el Kadi Abderrezzak, EDF R&D

Korean river restoration project for adapting to the multi-faceted changes in the climate crisis

Un Ji, KICT

Restoration of River Po

Paola Gallani, Autorità di bacino distrettuale del fiume Po (River Po Basin Authority)