Since the beginning of the 20th century, man has domesticated his environment and caused the modification of hydraulic conditions during floods. In parallel, civil engineering has strongly progressed in the domain of hydraulic structures but especially the construction of dams and dikes has also massively increased and part of the population has lost the culture of risk by thinking they were completely out of danger from flooding. Events of hydrometeorological origin over the last 25 years has reminded man that the hydraulic infrastructures in place for a few centuries now, are not unalterable. An unmanaged vegetal colonization along the edge of watercourses (protection dikes, retention dams, appointed river banks, ect« FDQ SUHVHQW three types of inconvenience as (i) overflow in the case of watercourse containment, (ii) formation of woody jams which generate a risk of bridge obstructions or water retention, (iii) the presence of trees and their roots which damages the containment systems protecting the territories. It is important to manage the development of this vegetation in order to conserve the positive effects on the area while also limiting the negative impacts. The current boom in vegetation engineering techniques shows that man is relearning how tR OLYH DV D µWHDP´ ZLWK QDWXUH
Historically, people lived in harmony with watercourses, cultivating their land and creating their habitat according to the benefits and the whims of the rivers. Since the beginning of the 20th century, man has domesticated his environment with determination. The rural exodus, the agricultural depreciation and the numerous river amenities have resulted in a momentum of area closures and in the modification of hydraulic conditions during the flow of flood waters. An unmanaged vegetation colonization along the edge of watercourses (protection dikes, retention dams, appointed river banks) induces various issues; however, a drastic management is not absolutely beneficial and sometimes even runs counter to the objective. The environmental issues conciliation -positive impact on fluvial ecosystems (shade, water decontamination, bank stabilization, biodiversity) -with anthropogenic issues is therefore essential to identify these suitable management solutions. Since 1970 and until 2006, phytopharmaceutical products were used extensively to control vegetation development on dikes, dams and canals due to their high-speed action and their low-cost implementation. Phytopharmaceutical product prohibition induces a great expansion of vegetation on structure cladding. Pioneer trees species like poplar are largely represented. Implanted near water points they grow fast in phytopharmaceutical treatment prohibited zone. Woody vegetation control methods are frequently implemented too late, when impacts caused by roots are observed; structural reparation costs are consequently very high. New vegetation management solutions have to be developed, in order to allow both risk reduction and environmental preservation. Some different eco-friendly solutions exist but must be promoted by rivers and dikes managers. This paper presents these integrated solutions and illustrates through some case studies the implemented solutions to reconcile the antagonist environmental and anthropogenic issues.
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