Beschrijving
LOCATION + COORDINATES
South of the city of Breda (NL), between the city of Breda and the Belgium border.
Restoration of natural meanders in the valley: 51°30'46.3"N 4°47'12.7"E (Google Maps: 51.512853, 4.786865
CATEGORY
Demonstration sites for permanent natural water retention
Demonstration sites for temporal water retention
DESCRIPTION SITE
The site is situated South of Breda within the catchment of the river Mark. Historically, the river Mark has been strongly embanked. Normalized rivers are straightened and over-dimensioned in width and depth, by which they drain water excessively. During dry periods, low base flows and poor water quality are observed. This has potentially strong implications on water provisioning (water extraction by Waterschap Brabantse Delta). In the Markdal River Basin the structure of the normalized rivers will be restored along a total trajectory of 1 km. By restructuring these rivers (meandering, making drainage basis less deep) water will be stored in the upstream valleys. ln periods of droughts, this water provides the essential base flow to downstream parts of the catchment, improving water quality and quantity.
MEASURES
Remeandering (2 to 4 meanders along a 1 km stretch)
Increase the groundwater level by applying level-controlled drainage
