RESTORIVER - for climate-resilient rivers and safe people

Climate resilient and natural water retention focused restoration of riversides and riparian areas are important for both people and nature in the Danube region

Human land-use, control and exploitation of rivers and riverine landscapes severely damage their ecological and climate adaptation conditions. Regulation of riverbeds, cutting of floodplains, exchange of natural banks and riparian habitats with built surfaces and industrial flow control devices, fatally deteriorate water retention capacities and adversely affect the climate change adaptation potential of these areas and systems.

Weather anomalies in the Danube River Basin appear as more severe droughts and consequently result in water shortages, as well as forest and vegetation fires. Countries near the Danube also face extreme floods, heavy rainfalls, strong windstorms and extreme heatwaves. These environmental risks that we face more and more often are extremely dangerous, not only for nature and wildlife but also for people.

The RESTORIVER project aims to increase climate adaptation capacities of riversides and riparian areas – potentially reducing the risk of droughts, floods and heatwaves. As these risks pose a particular challenge to urbanized areas because of their dense inhabitation and lack of green and blue surfaces, the project is focused on urban and periurban places near the Danube basin.

The main goal of the project is to promote climate change adaptation and disaster management in the Danube Region in order to solve the environmental risks on the transnational level by taking into account ecosystem-based approaches, such as natural water retention measures.

Natural Water Retention Measures (NWRM) are multi-functional measures that aim to protect and manage water resources using natural means and processes. They have the potential to provide multiple benefits, including flood risk reduction, water quality improvement, groundwater recharge and habitat improvement. This project focuses on six pilot areas in six countries, which will be used as good examples for later implementation of similar natural water retention measures and other nature-based solutions.

Besides that, the project goal is to improve the climate awareness & adaptation skills of stakeholders of riversides and riparian wetlands, as well as to raise public awareness about the importance of healthy rivers and riverside areas. It also includes the policy level with the main goal of improving planning and coordination frameworks to harmonize water and climate policies on various levels.

The RESTORIVER project is supported by the Interreg Danube Region Programme co-funded by the European Union. It covers 7 countries - Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine and its main priority is greener, low-carbon Danube Region.