- What are the effects of river regulation by dams on river vegetation?
- Are the effects of river regularization consistent and persistent?
- How far do the effects of regularization reach in the river?
The 13th factsheet of the RIVEAL project – River regulation effects on vegetation – answers these questions and shows how vegetation responds proportionally to the intensity of regularization.
The effects of regularization fade downstream along the river to a point (distance from dam, intensity of regularization) beyond which plant communities are not significantly different from those in places with the natural river flow.
The RIVEAL Project aims to map and quantify the ecosystem services of rivers and riparian forests, predict changes in different climate scenarios, and study various forms of land use and water management in Portuguese river landscapes.
Learn more about the project at: http://www.riveal.pt/