CHIJ St.

Joseph’s Convent Chapter 6- Rivers

[Effectiveness of River Management Strategies]

 Channelisation is the process of changing the natural course of a river in order to make it flow in a specific
path so as to reduce the possibility of flooding.

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  It refers to the straightening and shortening of
the river channel.
 It shortens the river channel by removing
meanders along a winding river course and hence
reduces length of the river channel.
 e.g. the Mississippi River (USA) has been
shortened by 240km after re-alignment by cutting
off the meander through its neck
 Strategy is effective as the shortened and
deepened river carries away the sediments faster
and allows faster flow of the river, therefore,
minimising flooding risk. (link to reduced flooding
MUST be explicit)
1.
Other examples:
 Waikanae River re-alignment at Jim Cooke Park (New
Zealand)
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Description & Effectiveness
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While the strategy is effective/ successful in the
area where it is implemented, there are still
some drawbacks to its successful implantation:
 Short term measure as rivers
(such as the Mississippi River) will develop
meanders over time. These will become
pronounced, making the flow slower and the areas
around the river vulnerable to flooding.
 Effective in one (localised) area
- flooding problem may persist downstream
especially since smoother channel and faster
flow may increase sedimentation downstream
- this makes the downstream section of the river
shallower, reducing its capacity to hold water,
causing the river to overflow its banks and
hence flooding
 Expensive method as resources like funds and
manpower are required to shorter the course of the
river
 Results in the loss wetlands/ habitats for
marine life
- by shortening the course of rivers, the area of
wetland shrinks because the river flows over a
smaller land area now
Limitations/ Ineffectiveness/ Drawbacks
  It refers to the widening and deepening of the
river channel to increase its ability to hold
water.
 1st method: dredging channel to remove excess
sediment from the river bed, thus deepening
- e.g. Singapore River & Kallang River in Singapore
(re-sectioned through dredging)
 2nd method: river bed and banks are smoothened by
replacing the soil of the river banks and bed with
cement and granite
 Chances of a river overflowing its banks and causing
flooding are reduced since the river channel is able
to hold more water (with the deepening).
2.
 Only effective in one area
- flooding problem may persist further down
stream especially since smoother channel and
faster flow may increase sedimentation
downstream
- smoother channel and faster river flow may
increase sedimentation further downstream
- this makes the downstream section of the river
shallower, reducing its capacity to hold water,
causing overflowing and flooding
 Expensive method as resources like funds and
manpower are required for regular maintenance
such as dredging
 results in the loss wetlands/ habitats for

marine life
 Smoothening of river channel leads to lesser friction
- e.g. by shortening the course of rivers, the area
between water and river bed and banks and the
of wetland shrinks because the river flows over a
speed of river will increase and water will flow away
smaller land area now
from the area more quickly.

 Effective short-term measure as the increased river

flow prevents river from reaching flood height, so
that the areas along the river is protected from
flooding.

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  involves manipulating the banks to protect
them from being eroded
 refers to the building of artificial walls of sandbags,
rocks, concrete metal (known as levees/
embankments/ dykes) to raise banks and
increase river depth, thus increasing the water-
holding capacity of river channel
 One method of bank protection is the building of
artificial levees or dykes
- refers to walls of sandbags, stone or concrete
are built along rivers that often overflow their
banks
- dykes have built in
China for centuries in the lower course of the
Yellow River
3.
 Dykes have not been very successful because of the
continual build up of sediments on the river bed,
making the channel shallower.
- this has caused water
levels to rise higher than the dyke walls over the
years
 Higher dykes have to be built regularly or the
sediments have to be dug up and removed from the
river bed
 Expensive method as it incurs high maintenance
costs
 May not be effective in cases of heavy rainfall when
the volume of water in the channel may overwhelm
effectiveness of the dykes in retaining water in the

channel. (e.g. dykes along the Mississippi River in

- Mississippi River that runs through New Orleans New Orleans burst during Hurricane Katrina in 2005)
in America

 Concrete structures, like gabions and revetments,

are built along a river channel
- Purpose: to divert the flow of water from the
river banks to the centre of the channel
- this protects the river banks from being eroded
by the force of running water
- thereby reducing the amount of sediments that
flow into the river

♣ Effective strategy as a deeper river channel (with

less sediments), increases the capacity of the
river to hold water. This prevents water from
overflowing its banks during heavy rain, hence e.g. The West London Dyke is 2374 metres long,
reducing the chances of flooding. and runs along the west bank of the North
Thames River
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  It is the planting of vegetation such as  Weight of vegetation could also contribute to bank
mangroves to protect river banks against erosion stresses, causing bank collapse and eventual
(i.e. minimise bank erosion). sediment build-up in river channel.

 Vegetation also slows down the rate of surface
runoff.
- prevents large amounts
of water from entering the river at any one time
- reduces the amount of
eroded sediments being transported into the
river
- thus, the channel does
not become shallower, reducing the chances of
floods
 Planting of vegetation may also result in the loss of
marine life.
- ecosystems may be destroyed in the process of
channelisation
- excessive shade prevents sunlight from reaching
the river bed and this kills aquatic plants and
affects aquatic food chains

 Effective as a longer term solution as vegetation

4.

slows down the rate of surface runoff

- roots of trees and other plants anchor/hold
soil together firmly, stabilising the banks
- prevents large amounts of water from entering
the river at any one time
- reduces the amount of eroded sediments from
being transported into the river
- thus, the channel does not become shallower,
reducing the chances of floods

 Thus, planting of vegetation prevents the silting

of rivers (i.e. piling up of sediments) and reduces
the chances of floods

 E.g. Pasir Ris Park (Singapore), Sungei Api Api

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  Dams can be constructed to temporarily store
rainwater that falls upstream during heavy rainfall
 Dam construction is multi-purpose and not a
solely channel management strategy
- can provide flood protection, maintain normal
running water functions, store irrigation water,
and create hydroelectric power
 E.g. Three Gorges Dam (China)
- constructed across the Yangtze River due to the
5.
 Success of dam is often enjoyed at the expense of
good farming land
- upstream: good farming land behind the dam has
to be permanently flooded
- downstream: prevents deposition of silt (i.e. very
fertile soil) in the lower course of the river, reduces
the fertility of the soil and affects agricultural
productivity in the floodplains in the lower course
 In China, the huge weight and water fluctuations in
the reservoir have caused crumbling cliffs, severe soil

1998 Yangtze River floods erosion, fatal landslides and ecological damage in the
- about 325km upstream from Shanghai and is areas around the dam.
controlled by sluice gates to control river flow
- effective as frequency of flooding downstream
has reduced
- in 2007, during the heavy summer rains, the
Yangtze did not flood as the dam released
limited amounts of water into the Yangtze and
trapped excess rains in the huge reservoir
behind it