Harmonizing Erosion Control and Flood Prevention with Restoration of Biodiversity through Ecological Engineering Used for Co-Benefits Nature-Based Solutions

Abstract

Reconciling erosion control and flood prevention with restoration of diversity is an important challenge for our societies today. However, examples of applications remain rare because practitioners and engineers are searching for more integrated solutions for this kind of situation. New considerations should, therefore, refocus attention on developing innovative actions by raising the question of how best to accommodate the two components. Moreover, little attention has been paid to erosion processes and their control for decreasing floods, although this can largely contribute to this purpose. Merging security with ecology, turning to co-benefits nature-based solutions at the catchment scale, based on the use of local ecological engineering, especially soil and water bioengineering combined with civil engineering, can provide adapted practices for harmonizing flood prevention and erosion control with restoration of biodiversity at the water catchment scale. This kind of approach should be accompanied by proposals for coherent and adapted governance for application of co-benefits nature-based solutions at the catchment and territory scales.