Riverbank Management
Floodplains are areas that border a river that naturally provide space for the retention of floods and rainwater. Floodplains absorb the impact of flood waters, and their fertile soils give life to riparian ecosystems that support wildlife habitat. They also filter pollutants out of the water before they reach the river. These sensitive areas are increasingly impacted by human use and lost due to changes in land drainage, urbanization, and river channelization.
Our goal is to restore eroded riverbanks so they can once again retain water and support healthy ecosystems, reconnect floodplains to the river channel, and minimize disruption to adjacent land uses wherever possible.
Several projects are achieving these goals, including a 2019 bank stabilization project along the Animas River in Flora Vista. This stretch of the river was heavily eroded out due to a channelized section of the river and was threatening irrigation infrastructure for hundreds of water users downstream. To remedy this problem, a series of bendway weirs were installed over time in the river channel to redirect the force of flow away from the riverbank and encourage sediment deposits to rebuild the eroded section of the river.