Author(s): Hannes Zoschg; Mario Dax; Johannes Wesemann; Wolfgang Katschnig; Julien Barbier; Markus Aufleger

Linked Author(s): Hannes Zöschg, Markus Aufleger

Keywords: Renewable energy; Riverbed stabilization; River flow power plant; River restoration; Sustainable hydropower

Abstract:

Like many other rivers in Central Europe, the Lower Salzach River in the Tittmoning Basin on the border between Austria and Germany has been straightened and narrowed over the last two centuries and is currently undergoing a pronounced process of riverbed erosion. Several concepts have been developed for the sustainable stabilization of the riverbed and the ecological improvement of the river and the adjacent riparian zones. Of these, the variant E1+ Mehr Fluss appears particularly promising. It combines established elements of river restoration, such as the removal of riverbank fixations and the creation of additional watercourses, as initial steps for a long-term development concept, with a ramp structure for riverbed stabilization, including an ecologically compatible run-of-river hydropower plant, the so-called river flow power plant (RFPP). The RFPP is particularly characterized by the preservation of the longitudinal continuity and the flowing river character with dynamic water levels in the headwater. Furthermore, the RFPP allows a controlled response to unfavorable morphological developments both upstream and downstream by means of appropriate operating modes. Therefore, the variant E1+ Mehr Fluss represents a comprehensive ecological concept for the necessary river restoration by combining the aspects of riverbed stabilization, flood protection, improvement of river ecology, green energy production and climate protection.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/978-90-833476-1-5_iahr40wc-p0477-cd

Year: 2023