River and Water Catchment Restoration

7/18/2019 River and Water Catchment Restoration

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/river-and-water-catchment-restoration 1/12

Water in rivers is, if you like, a gift which thecommunity higher in the watershed hands down

to the communities lower on the river.The society which acts as the bearer of such agift should not try to plunder it, but should pass

it down in a fit and cared-for state.

M.Kravcik

R!"R #$% W#T"R &#T&'M"$T

R"(T)R#T)$

Rod "verett #pril *+



#ctionsTo divert and catch the ecess flash flood water to hold it in the landscape. This will allowThe water to infiltrate into the underground a/uifers and be available to feed the deep spring cycle.

0ondsholdingwater

&reate contour swales1ditches thatfollow the contour2 that hold watern the landscape and help it infiltrate.

Trees planted along the contour help toTake the water deep into the ground.

The 0ontbren pro3ect found 4 more infiltration with&ontour tree planting compared to gra5ed land

This is water that only appears with heavy rain

$ew ponds or other water retentionfeatures hold water in the landscape and provide!aluable wildlife habitat.



#ctionTo slow down water flow in deep gully bottoms with check dams.&heck dams are stable leaky dams.

$atural checkdam

#ction 6To stabilise vegetation in the highest catchment areas to slow the run off of storm water."ncouraging the development of blanket bog with dwarf shrubs such as heather, crossleaved heath, bilberry and cranberry, and sphagnum species.

#ction(ome high eroding areas could benefit from woodland planting to hold the soil&ool rain water and infiltrate water.



%iagram from 7water for the recovery of the climate8 9 M.Kravcik et al

&ontour swales and ponds awayfrom the main stream can becreated to catch ecess flood

water. (ome of this water willnfiltrate into the ground water and some will be released slowlyback into the main stream.



These actions will have multiple benefits, whose impactwill only become evident when we step back and seeThe larger picture they contribute to.

t is up to us to make sure our rivers survive and thrive.Water is our most precious resource and it needs its ownspace. )therwise our source of life might 3ust disappear.)tmar :rober.

f we focus on each separate activity, t is easy to dismiss it bythinking 7That won;t do much8. To see the power of a step, weneed to ask 7 What is it part of<8 #n action might seem inconse/uential by itself. t adds to andinteracts with other actions in ways that contribute to a muchbigger picture of change.=.Macy and &.=ohnstone

The following section highlights the multiple benefits

for the local &ommunity from River and water catchment restoration.



Reduced erosion

Reduced sediment Loss and discoloration

Slower run off Aquifers

refilled

Natural Springs

restored

Fish numbers And diversity increased

Fishing viable

Livestock

marketing

Reduced Pollution

own river And on beaches

!inimiseFlood damage"o Property

#ncrease#n wildlife

Reduced likelihood

of peat fires

$limate and %eather moderated

>enefits from River and water catchment Restoration

#ncreased potential For water based energy

&ducation



>enefit * Reduced sediment Reduced water discolouration and sediment loss from the upper catchmentand the river banks further downstream. ncluded in these sediments are valuablesoil nutrients. These sediments use up oygen in the river making it less able to cleanany pollution reducing the rivers ability to support a rich a/uatic life.

>enefit ? Slower run-off >y protecting the ground surface and re-vegetating the land the water run-off is slower.

>are ground heats up and dries out. n a warm dry condition it throws water off without itsinking in. This is similar to water rushing off a hot stove surface.

>enefit @ Refilled aquifers>y holding the water longer in the landscape it gives it more chance of infiltrating into theunderground a/uifers and into the soil structure. 1The underground and soil water ishundreds of times larger than the water visible in lakes and rivers2. This water is important

for growing grass and the deeper water provides water for springs and boreholes.

7t is also paradoical that soil partially saturated with water is capableof better absorbing more water than dried out soil. f precipitation fallson compacted and dried out soil, infiltration to deeper layers occurs onlyafter a period of ten minutes or more. n the first minutes, however, the soil behaves likean impermeable surface. %uring etreme rains, there is a rapid runoff and concentration

of rainwater to river beds. This same rainfall--- would be easily absorbed in landhealthily saturated with water.8 Kravcik.

>enefit Reduced erosionReduced erosion down river. Aandslips and undercutting of banks should be reducedThis will benefit farmers down stream who are losing soil.7# farmers wealth is in the soil. %on;t lose it8.



>enefit B Viable fishing)nce the fish have returned then fishing would become a viable activity. This wouldgive potential added income for farmers and landowners down the river.

>enefit C Potential livestock marketing

Restoring the river catchment will give opportunities for livestock marketing.n Wales the 0ontbren farmers group 1a group of + neighbouringsmall farms located in the heart of the Welsh countryside2 haverestored their water catchment to bring otters back and havedeveloped a marketing group based on their highest possiblestandards of environmental management, particularly aroundwater management and slowing water runn off.

>enefit Spring water )nce the spring water is flowing regularly then small streams will not dry out.n recent years some side streams that have never been dry, have in recent yearsbeen empty of water for weeks. When this happens all the a/uatic life dies. t may alsoremove areas important for fish spawning.These springs are important for gra5ing livestock as they provide mineral rich water.

Recent boreholes have been getting deeper indicating the depletion of our valuableunderground water resources.

>enefit 4 More diverse fish, larger numbers and sizeWith a more stable water flow and less scouring of the river by flash floods, the successfuspawning of brown and sea trout should improve. Aeading eventually to restored

fish stocks similar to those in the D*+,s.



>enefit D Reduced PollutionReduced pollution down river and onto the beaches around Morecambe >ay.With flash floods, animal manures are picked up from the land and washed into the river.n Elash floods, the river water flow has hori5ontal rolling flow instead of the normal

Aongitudinal vorte flow down the river. With the hori5ontal rolling flow the manure does notget cleaned as it moves down the river and causes pollution problems 1This is one of theprime reasons for setting up the Aower Aune &atchment (ensitive #rea2.With a steady river flow and longitudinal vortices, the light harmful anaerobic bacteriaget thrown to the outer edge of the vorte where they are killed by high levels of oygen.Within a few hundred yards the river can be cleaned.

Aongitudinal flow- &leaning

'ori5ontal rolling flow

0olluting



>enefit + ncrease in !iodiversit"# # steady flow of water in the river would benefit wildlife.>irds like dippers would increase with less acid input from the peat.%ragon flies and amphibians like newts, would make use of any water

held in the landscape.)tters would return with increased fish stocks.The steady flow would enable the fresh water limpet to re establish in the side streams.



>enefit * Reduced risk of peat firesMore water in the soil and more moisture in the blanket bog will help to reduce theRisk of fires in very dry conditions. Eires that remove the top vegetation and getinto the peat are very damaging to the long term stability of the upper catchment area.

# fire in the D@+;s is likely to have been the destabilising factor on Mallowdale 0ike thatAed to the flood disaster in D4B down the valley.

>enefit ? Reduced flood damage to buildings and highwa"sReduced risk of flood damage down river. This damage can be to buildings

9 such as the Wray Elood, or to highways with flooding and undercutting roads

.

>enefit @ More stable potential for water power ncreased potential for water power and water use further down the river.

>enefit $ducationFnderstanding how to honour and love your river will be very important ineducation of our younger generation.

>enefit ncreased habitat for game cover and natural game feed#0lanting trees, encouraging heather regeneration and wetland creationMake ideal game habitat.



0otential wider benefit of %limate moderation#M Kravick argues that this form of river restoration is vital for climate moderation. 'e hasinstigated similar work throughout (lovakia.The upper catchment will hold more water. This will enable evaporation into theatmosphere in warm conditions. This has a moderating effect on temperature and weatherand will protect the ground from overheating.7a surface with no ability to evaporate water creates not only favorable conditions forthe origin of etreme weather, but also eacerbates the effects of such weather.8

The weather effects will be both, local and towards the drier east side of the country.n addition a reduction in the loss of peat reduces the release of &)* and methane.These gases contribute to contribute to global warming.

7The draining of the land is like living on debts. Water falling from the large water cycleis like a state subsidy. t comes for free but not regularly, often to wrong recipients andin the wrong amounts. t sometimes brings more harm than good. To rely on it is riskybecause today it is here, but tomorrow it may not be.8

%raining does not specifically relate to farmers drainage of fields it is more that thewhole catchment is losing water by fast run off. t isn;t being held in the landscape,underground a/uifers or the vegetation. Thus overall the catchment is depleting theamount of water over time. Reinstating the short water cycle where local evaporation helps to protect the land is important for our future.Eor full details see M. Kravcik Water for the recovery of the climate 9a new water paradigm. #vailable on the internet.

Documents

River and Water Catchment Restoration