Redevelopment of floodplains and wetlands

For many decades extreme water levels on the Danube River have caused serious flood damage and casualties in Romania. Sustainable measures have not yet been taken as the Romanian administration has not succeeded in obtaining available European financial resources from Brussels. Poor preparation of viable project proposals and the complexity of the Romanian institutional organisations for flood management have been the main causes.

A consortium of consultants managed by Witteveen+Bos developed a new decision-making procedure for implementation of flood control measures. Its application was demonstrated on a major floodplain along the Danube River for which spatial plans were prepared, introducing a new concept for flood control: rearrangement of the flood plain instead of reinforcement of the existing dikes only. The project also demonstrated the modern inclusive approach of problem solving in which flood control improvements are complemented with agricultural rehabilitation and wetland development and in which the public actively participated in the development of plans. The demonstration project has also supported the Romanian administration to be better prepared to apply for international financial support in its battle against floods.