Órbigo River ecological status improvement, Spain

NWRM

Climate zone

cool temperate moist

Mean rainfall

534,700012207031

Mean rainfall unit

mm/year

Average temperature

10,6700000762939

Type

Case Study Info

Light or indepth?

In-depth

Average slope range

0-1% (average slope of the Órbigo River Stretch I: 0.3%)

Vegetation class

Riparian vegetation with poorly preserved continuity due to replacement with other uses (adjacent crops: agro (irrigation) and forest (poplar: Populus x euroamericana).

Application scale

River

Installation date

2012-09

Performance timescale

1 - 4 years

Area (ha)

160500

Area subject to Land use change or Management/Practice change (ha)

Size

Size unit

Design capacity description

Variable volume of retained water according to circulating water flow. For this kind of intervention it is more appropriate to use the concept of "slow down flow water"; and the use of simulation models (different water volumes and return periods). e.g. Flood lamination: 4-5 hm3; Water volume: 590 m3/s; Return period: 500 years [Source: River Basin Authority, personal communication]

Inflow volume

16,1100006103516

Inflow volume unit

m3/sec

Public consultation

Design contractual arrangement

No data

Design consultation activity

Activity stage	Key issues	Name	Comments
Screening phase	Preparatory phase (year 2009): with municipal majors/neighbourhood associations'representatives. Using ortophotos (years 56-57, 2004 and 2008) as a basis for analysing changes in floodplain
Design phase	a) Diagnosis phase (year 2009): Compilling and analysing information provided by the referred stakeholders; b) Informative sessions: with other interested stakeholders (inhabitants)
Other	Public hearing phase (year 2009: alternatives were discussed and showed by means of computer simulation on the basis of ortophotos (years 2004 and 2008).		[CHD, 2013b]: More than 50 meetings (in a period of 3 years) with stakeholders.
Other	Monitoring		[Source: Barquero and Santillán (2012a)]
Design phase	Informative sessions (for stakeholder (inhabitants)
Implementation phase	a) Informative sessions (for stakeholder (inhabitants); b) Dissemination activities (for external audience) and field trips: Riverbasin Authority/Ministry of Environnment Websites; Specialised national/international networks on river restoration (newsletters, presentations). 2013 IRF European Riverprize finalist practice.Field trips from: Universities, Administration bodies, within in the framework of specialised workshop; c) Newspapers; d) Volunteering and environmental education programme
Screening phase	Preparatory phase (year 2009): with municipal majors/neighbourhood associations'representatives. Using ortophotos (years 56-57, 2004 and 2008) as a basis for analysing changes in floodplain	CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES
Design phase	a) Diagnosis phase (year 2009): Compilling and analysing information provided by the referred stakeholders; b) Informative sessions: with other interested stakeholders (inhabitants)	CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES
Other	Public hearing phase (year 2009: alternatives were discussed and showed by means of computer simulation on the basis of ortophotos (years 2004 and 2008).	CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES	[CHD, 2013b]: More than 50 meetings (in a period of 3 years) with stakeholders.
Other	Monitoring	CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES	[Source: Barquero and Santillán (2012a)]
Design phase	Informative sessions (for stakeholder (inhabitants)	COMMUNICATION
Implementation phase	a) Informative sessions (for stakeholder (inhabitants); b) Dissemination activities (for external audience) and field trips: Riverbasin Authority/Ministry of Environnment Websites; Specialised national/international networks on river restoration (newsletters, presentations). 2013 IRF European Riverprize finalist practice.Field trips from: Universities, Administration bodies, within in the framework of specialised workshop; c) Newspapers; d) Volunteering and environmental education programme	COMMUNICATION

Design land use change

No data

Design authority

Authority type	Role	Name	Comments
National water authority	Initiation of the measure	Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino), MARM	Providing a general framework (drawing up the National Strategy on River Restoration, ENRR) in which this initiative can take place)
Regional / sub-national water authority	Determination of design details of the measure	River Basin Authority (Confederacií³n Hidrográfica del Duero)	Selecting a candidate project to be developed within the framework of the National Strategy on River Restoration. Selection criteria based on IMPRESS, Methodological Guide on River Restoration and priority areas aimed at improving connectivity
Regional / sub-national water authority	Implementation	River Basin Authority (Confederacií³n Hidrográfica del Duero)	Preparatory, diagnosis, public hearing process and works
National water authority	Implementation	Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino), MARM	Participation during preparatory, diagnosis, public hearing process and works
Other	Implementation	Municipalities (Ayuntamientos): Cimanes del Tejar, Llamas de la Ribera, Carrizo de la Ribera, Turcia and Santa María del Rey	Participation during preparatory, diagnosis and public hearing process
Other	Implementation	Local entity (Juntas vecinales)	Participation during preparatory, diagnosis and public hearing process
NGO	Implementation	Neighbourhood associations	Participation during preparatory, diagnosis and public hearing process
National water authority	Financing	Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino), MARM	Within the framework of the National Strategy on River Restoration
Regional / sub-national water authority	Monitoring	River Basin Authority (Confederacií³n Hidrográfica del Duero)

Key lessons

A 2013 IRF European Riverprize finalist.
a) Good practice of integrated water management and land use policies
b) Implementation of innovative concepts (e.g. “room for the river”, green infrastructure…)
c) Relevance of management and planning tasks.
d) Example of integrated approach in WFD and FD implementation
e) Example of the need to devote a great deal of time and effort to explain to the stakeholders the scope of the measures in order to achieve their acceptance and their participation. Multiplier effects are obtained when stakeholders became aware of the effectiveness of the measures.
e) Example of the relevance of public involvement during the whole process (public participation during the planning cycle and volunteering within the framework of environmental programme linked to the Project).
f) Impact on the media (beyond the pressnotes on the plan).
g) Replicability (downstream stretches) potential and networking potential (the project derived in the participation of the Basin Authority -together with other 4 European basin authorities- in the ECRR Community of Practice -launched in 2013 as a network for sharing their experiences in river restoration-).
(Source: CHD, 2013a; River Basin Authority, personal communication).

Financing difficulties

Success factor(s)

Success factor type	Success factor role	Comments
Public participation	main factor	Active participation process during the whole life-cycle of the project
Attitude of decision makers	main factor	Innovative approach, strong involvement and will to promote participation
Existing staff and consultant knowledge	main factor	Innovative approach, strong involvement and will to promote participation
Existing institutional framework	main factor	Coordination between Ministry and River Basin Authority
Financing possibilities	main factor
Other		Scale and adopted approach: long river stretch (23 km) within the framework of a wider scale project (100 km long river, watershed and “historical” approach) instead of a punctual and isolated intervention in a specific site.

Financing

Financing type	Comments
National funds	This measure is implemented within the framework of the National Strategy for River Restoration (ENRR, Estrategia Nacional de Restauración de Ríos). Funding: Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino), MARM

Barrier

Barrier type	Barrier role	Comments
Attitude of relevant stakeholders	main barrier	At first, local population was relunctant to the implementation of the project. Reasons: they didn't understand the theory (intervention was very different -aim was to create "room for the river"- to anything else carried out previously in the river) and how it would work in practical terms. [Source: CHD (2013a]]

Driver

Driver type	Driver role	Comments
Past flooding events	main driver
Organisation committed to it	main driver

Financing share type	Share	Comments
National funds	100

Policy description

Loss of lateral (main derived problem: floods) and transversal connectivity, river dynamics (erosion and sedimentation) alteration, flow alteration and riparian forest loss and fragmentation. Pressures for this water body (identified by IMPRESS): hydromorphological (weirs, channels...) and land-use patterns. [Source:INFRAECO (2011a)]

Part of wider plan

Policy target

Target purpose
Peak-flow reduction
Runoff control
Erosion Control
Improved Biodiversity
Oher Societal Benefits

Policy pressure

No data

Policy area

No data

Policy impact

No data

Policy wider plan

Wider plan type	Wider plan focus	Name	Comments
National	Water	National Strategy for River Restoration (Estrategia Nacional de Restauracií³n de Río, ENRR)	Sub-programme 3 (improvement of the longitudinal continuity of the rivers within the Duero basin) and 4 (improvement of the lateral continuity of the rivers within the Duero basin) [Source: Rodríguez et al., 2012a]

Policy requirement directive

No data

Costs land acquisition information

Null value as intervention were carried out in Public domain land [INFRAECO (2011d)]

Costs operational information

Commonly no operational cost is associated to this kind of project (river restoration) [Source: García et al. (2013)]

Costs maintenance information

Variable according to the specific element considered (average values for Spanish river basins: 1.2% of initial investment cost for fishladders; 20% of total investment cost for revegetation works; 15% of total investment cost for bioengineering works) [Source: García et al., 2013]. Due to the implementation of the project maintenance costs have been drastically reduced (CHD, 2013a). These costs were expected to be very low and assumed by the Duero River Basin Authority within the framework of its Public Domain Conservation Programme (Source: CHD, 2009).

Costs total

3084697,25

Costs total information

This is the total projected budget. Budget breakdown: 1. Lateral connectivity and dynamics improvement works (52.01%); 2. Longitudinal continuity improvement works (15.70%); 3. Riverbank estabilization works (7.52%); 4. Site access improvement (11.14%); 4. Supplementary works (2.57%); 5. Other items: monitoring of works (3.89%); environmental monitoring (3.89%); risk prevention (2.23%); waste management (1.06%) [Source: INFRAECO (2011d) ] Executed budget: 2065264.81 € [Source: River Basin Authority, personal communication]

Ecosystem improved biodiversity

Information on Ecosystem improved biodiversity

Higher habitat diversity as a consequence of the improvement of longitudinal and lateral continuity due to reforestation of riparian forest (0.6% recovery, 6.5 ha as planned in technical reportt+fish ladders) and due to recovering adjacent fluvial areas. [Source: CHD (2013a); INFRAECO (2011a)]

Ecosystem provisioning services

Information on Ecosystem provisioning services

Recreational (opening access to the river banks); b) Integration of the river in urban areas (improvement of the landscape and tourism sector strenthening) [Source: CHD (2013a)]

Ecosystem impact climate regulation

No information available

Ecosystem flood control volume

160

Information on retained water

Variable volume of retained water according to circulating water flow and water depth. For this kind of intervention it is more appropriate to use the concept of "slow down flow water" and the use of simulation models (different water volumes and return periods). E.g. Flood lamination: 4-5 hm3; Water volume: 590 m3/s; Return period: 500 years

Information on Peak flow rate reduction

According to the Planning Office (River Basin Authority) (on-going evaluation) NRWM have performed properly against floods that took place during Winter 2013 (160 m3 flood: same as those in 1995 and 2000 causing serious damage) and during the Winter of 2014 (300 m3). These were successfully abated thanks to NWRM [Source: River Basin Authority, personal communication]

Information on Increased infiltration

Greater infiltration rate and rate of recharge of the natural floodplains. [Source: CHD (2013b]]

Information on Ecosystem flood control volume

According to Planning Office (River Basin Authority) (on going evaluation) these NRWM have performed properly against floods that took place during Winter 2013: 160 m3 flood, (same that in 1995 and 2000 caused serious damage) was successfully abated thanks to implemented NWRMs

Ecosystem erosion control

Water quality overall improvements

Not relevant for this application

Information on Water quality overall improvements

According to technical project [Source: INFRAECO (2011a) initial water quality status for the Stretch I (chemical/physical status /microinvertebrates/diatomes) was rated as good-very good so no specific measures were designed for this purpose. Despite of this, first evaluation results show that the ecological status of this water body has been improved.

Soil quality overall soil improvements

N/A info

Information on Soil quality overall soil improvements

Positive effects regarding infiltration rate and rate of recharge of the alluvial natural floodplains and soil fertilization are expected but no empirical evidence has been obtained yet [Source: CHD (2013b]]

Information on Soil quality overall soil carbon

Positive impact-SQ improvement

National Id

Spain_02

Site name

Duero River Basin, Órbigo River (segment I), León (NUTS3), Castilla y León (NUTS2))

Summary

Órbigo River (Duero River Basin, northwest of Spain) ecological status improvement. The budle of measures applied within the framework of this project (2013 IRF European Riverprize finalist) aimed to promote floodplain reconnection and restoration, revitalisation of flowing water, levelling of longitudinal barriers, natural bank stabilisation, elimination of riverbank protection and restoration and riparian buffer restoration and maintenance. The intended impacts of these NWRM were to improve the river (lateral and longitudinal) connectivity and dynamics.

NUTS Code

Castilla y León

RBD code

ES020

Transboundary

Data provider

Gonzalo Delacámara and Marta Rodríguez (IMDEA Water) in close cooperation with Ignacio Rodríguez Muñoz, José Ignacio Santillán Ibáñez and Rosa Huertas (Duero River Basin Authority, Confederación Hidrográfica del Duero)

Longitude

-5.82061595

Latitude

42.65652004

EEA core metadata

Contents

cs-es-02-final_version.pdf