| Techniques |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
Groups for
|
Groups against |
| Hard
Engineering |
| Dams and reservoirs |
Multi-purpose and non-polluting |
Speed up river flow downstream and increase the
flood risk Expensive |
Leisure users |
Environmentalists |
| Flood relief channel |
Greatly reduces the flood risk |
Very expensive
May encourage a false sense of security
|
Those living downstream where the flood risk
is decreased |
People who own land affected by the development |
| Making course straighter and shorter |
Relatively cheap |
Needs to be maintained |
Industry benefits from reduced transport costs |
Environmentalists: damages channel and bank
ecosystems |
| Strengthening levées |
Existing land uses can be maintained |
Need maintenance. Not sustainable in the long term |
Existing land users |
Those living downstream where the flood risk
is increased |
| Flood retention basins |
Store water at times of flood risk |
Requires international co-operation. Land use
restricted to recreational, pasture or forestry |
Those living downstream where the flood risk
is decreased |
Those people affected by the occasional flooding
e.g. hunters |
| Flood proofing |
Reduces damage |
May create a false sense of security |
People who can remain at their site |
People with businesses located on the floodplain
where damage cannot be reduced e.g. market gardening |
| Soft
Engineering |
| Afforestation |
Trees delay runoff and reduce the amount of water
reaching the river |
Forests generate little income |
Conservationists |
Farmers who have to convert their land to woodland |
| Floodplain land use zoning |
Low cost for undeveloped areas of floodplain. Some
industrial landusers require a floodplain location |
Existing floodplain damages are not reduced.
Industry may locate elsewhere |
Conservationists
Leisure users |
Local council, since the zoned land generates few
jobs or tax income |
| Room for the river |
Based on the idea that a change in one part of the
river system will cause knock-on effects downstream. Sustainable |
This solution would require a great degree of
co-operation among the authorities in the countries through which the Rhine and
its tributaries flow. Very expensive. Slow to take effect |
Conservationists: flood prevention and ecosystem
conservation given equal consideration |
Farmers who lose their land |
