Abstract

River restoration may be defined as “the re-establishment of natural physical processes (e.g. variation of flow and sediment movement), features (e.g. sediment sizes and river shape) and physical habitats of a river system (including submerged, bank and floodplain areas)”. This definition, from the IUCN (NC UK) report on River Restoration and Biodiversity (Addy et al., 2016), will underpin the CEN standard. River restoration may be defined as “the re-establishment of natural physical processes (e.g. variation of flow and sediment movement), features (e.g. sediment sizes and river shape) and physical habitats of a river system (including submerged, bank and floodplain areas)”. This definition, from the IUCN (NC UK) report on River Restoration and Biodiversity (Addy et al., 2016), will underpin the CEN standard. The CEN standard on river hydromorphology (EN 14614: “Water quality - Guidance standard for accessing the hydromorphological features of rivers”) will provide the link to the approach approved for use under the WFD. (EN 14614 is at present subject to revision.) The scope of the standard should be broad, covering the varied reasons for undertaking river restoration, all spatial scales of restoration (river channels, riparian areas, floodplains, and set within a framework of catchment management), and those fields of study needed for planning and undertaking river restoration, such as hydrology, geomorphology, ecology and biology. The standard should address the benefits of river restoration for biodiversity, flood control, water quality, landscape, and human health and wellbeing, and should recognise the emphasis on ‘natural capital' and on ‘nature-based solutions' that are currently being advocated by many European governments. The standard should be aspirational, showing what can be achieved in the absence of constraints, while at the same time recognising the limitations that may restrict the outcomes of river restoration. The standard will not attempt to be overly prescriptive, because of the many types of rivers and streams that occur throughout Europe, but it should specify a set of minimum standards that are needed if river restoration is to be successful. It will recognise where good practice already exists and seek to build on it.

Begin

2023-06-09

WI

00230438

Planned document number

DIN EN 18025

Project number

11904888

Responsible national committee

NA 119-01-03-05-06 AK - Biological-ecological water examination  

Responsible european committee

CEN/TC 230/WG 25 - Water body characteristics  

draft standard

Water quality - Guidance standard on a strategic approach to river restoration; German and English version prEN 18025:2023
2023-11
Order from DIN Media