Author(s): D. Skublics; M. Fischer; P. Rutschmann
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Abstract: Due to recent extreme flooding of the River Danube in Bavaria, Germany, natural flood retention has been actively discussed as a flood mitigation measure. Indeed, because of anthropogenic influence during the last 200 years natural flood retention plains lost their previous function. Whereas at the Rhine River the capacity of artificial flood polders is regarded as volume compensation, we tried to quantify their effect on the hydrodynamic behavior of the Bavarian Danube. Therefore historical topography scenarios were combined with up to date 2D hydrodynamic computations. Drawings, maps and information from archives were used to set up three historical digital terrain models reproducing the state of the Danube between Neu-Ulm and Kelheim (172 km river stretch) around 1800 before river regulation, around 1900, and around 1950 before construction of the barrages. The comparison between current and pre-river regulation scenario (around 1800) shows that the early overflow of the historical flood retention space results in higher flood peaks compared to the initial state. Otherwise, the retardation of the flood wave in the historical scenario has a beneficial effect on the flood peaks downstream of the Lech river mouth.
Year: 2009