Thousands of dams and other man-made obstacles fragment the world’s waterways. Their removal, which is now happening at an increasing rate in many European countries, is the best way to breathe new life into rivers and local economies.
Rewilding Sweden has been carrying out river restoration work in Swedish Lapland since 2016. Newly funded efforts will now focus on removing barriers from the River Abramsån, promising benefits for migratory fish, local communities and wild nature.
The removal of the Sindi Dam and other barriers along Estonia’s Pärnu River will mean more than 3000 kilometres of waterway can flow unrestricted once again. By allowing salmon and other fish species to migrate naturally, this will breathe new life into the river basin and local economies. Estonia’s pioneering efforts will be showcased during a Dam Removal Europe seminar on May 22 and 23, 2019.
Restoration work carried out on the Ina and Gowienica rivers (and their tributaries) is part of the Oder Delta rewilding programme, and will hopefully boost fish migration and populations in the area.
With only 40 percent of Europe’s waterways in good condition, a new study published today calls for tens of thousands of redundant dams and other barriers to be removed to help restore rivers and lakes – boosting wildlife populations and benefiting communities across the continent. A new initiative called Dam Removal Europe aims to start an era of dam removal.
Complementing river restoration work in its own operational areas, Rewilding Europe will collaborate with partner organisations in this new initiative to campaign for and support the removal of dams from European waterways. In this way we can scale up river rewilding across the continent.
King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands saw first hand a prime example of river rewilding during his visit today to Nijmegen, EU Green Capital 2018. The King was given a guided walk of the River Waal floodplain by Frans Schepers, Managing Director of Rewilding Europe, and Professor Hans de Kroon of the Institute for Water and Wetland Research at Nijmegen’s Radboud University, learning how river restoration has brought a wide range of benefits to the Gelderse Poort area.
The restoration of the River Waal in Nijmegen in the Netherlands is a showcase for contemporary rewilding. In June Rewilding Europe and the Municipality of Nijmegen led an excursion presenting the restoration to representatives of various European green cities.
Funding from the German brewery, which has already proved vital to rewilding work carried out in the delta in 2017, will be used for ongoing river restoration and habitat improvement.