TITLE:
Installation of a Riparian Forest by Means of Soil Bio Engineering Techniques—Monitoring Results from a River Restoration Work in Southern Brazil
AUTHORS:
Hans Peter Rauch, Fabricio Sutili, Stephan Hörbinger
KEYWORDS:
Soil Bioengineering; Riverbank Restoration; Riparian Forest; Rio Grande do Sul
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Forestry,
Vol.4 No.2,
February
25,
2014
ABSTRACT: Soil bioengineering has been applied more and more in different regions of Brazil in recent years. The study in hand presents the installation of “new” riparian forest based on soil bioengineering techniques. This riverbank restoration work was implemented in the year 2010 and two onsite vegetation surveys, one shortly after the construction, and one in 2013. Besides that, the structures of reinforcement work, and its effectiveness were evaluated. By means of the vegetation survey, the applied species were examined for their ability to establish the riverbank in an environmentally sustainable way. Most notably, the species Calliandra brevipes Benth. (Fabaceae, Mimosoideae), Phyllanthus sellowianus Müller Arg. (Euphorbiaceae), Salix humboldtiana Willd. (Salicaceae), Bauhinia forficate Link (Leguminosae), Inga marginata Willd. (Mimosoideae) and Ateleia glazioveana Baill. (Leguminosae, Papilionoideae) showed a good growth development. The proportion of spontaneous vegetation increased significantly, with Pennisetum purpureum Schumach. becoming a dominating species. Resulting from that, the intervention can be assessed as functional and safe, but the strong increase of spontaneous vegetation is undesirable due to less flood resistance. The vegetated riprap could be the best to meet the expectations of the construction elements. Partly, the anchored willows showed as well a good growth development whereas the species used for the hedge brush layer could not develop as expected in large parts of the construction.