WEBVTT

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Germany has a problem with floods.

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"A state of emergency

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has been declared in parts of the South."

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"...the deadliest floods in living memory."

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"Germany saw its heaviest rainfall

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in a century."

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One big reason is that we’ve messed

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 with the natural flow of rivers.

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And this isn’t just a German problem.

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The same thing is happening

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all over the world.

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And now we’re paying the price.

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As climate change brings

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more extreme weather,

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these changed landscapes

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are more prone to destructive flooding.

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"But in this forest, things are different.

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It’s become a role model

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for how we can flood-proof our rivers

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— even in cities."

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"So, how did they do that?"

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Rivers aren’t supposed to look like this.

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Today, many of them are straight,

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narrow, deep, depleted

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and surrounded by concrete.

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That’s because humans have

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a long history of changing rivers

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and their landscapes

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so they can use them for farming,

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industry, transportation

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and to build houses close to their edge.

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"This river here is a great example of

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how we have messed

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with our landscapes.

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As you can see, it’s been straightened,

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regulated, and diked.

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Also, parts of the floodplains on its sides,

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which would usually provide space

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for overflowing water,

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have been drained and filled."

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The rivers and floodplains in this area

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serve an important function, though.

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They cross the cities of Leipzig,

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Markkleeberg, and Schkeuditz

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and are supposed to store

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and supply water

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to one of the largest

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urban floodplain forests in Central Europe

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that is home to many animals

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and plant species.

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But from the middle of the 19th century,

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dams and bridges for railroads

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were built here

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— right through the forest.

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And during that process,

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former river courses in this area

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were cut off and are now lying dry.

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And all this means

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they can no longer supply water

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to the floodplain forest.

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"And that’s not just happening here..."

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Around two thirds of the floodplains

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along Germany’s 79 major rivers

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can no longer serve their original purpose

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of storing excess water

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because of the dikes built to stop water

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from reaching them.

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One third of the remaining

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floodplain areas are covered

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by fields and houses.

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And it’s happening across Europe,

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where 70-90% of floodplains

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have been environmentally degraded.

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Asia and the Americas

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are also struggling

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with depleted floodplains.

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"So why is that a problem?"

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Floodplains are not only

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important ecosystems.

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They also absorb and store carbon

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from the atmosphere,

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helping tackle climate change.

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And, maybe most importantly

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for the people who live along the rivers:

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they keep flash floods in check.

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"Functioning floodplain forests are very,

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very important for us because they retain

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water in the landscape for a longer period.

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It means that we have this

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crucial sponge function."

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That’s Mathias Scholz,

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a floodplain ecologist.

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He’s been studying

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the role of rivers

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and coastal wetlands for decades.

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"If we no longer have floodplains

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and floodplain forests,

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water flows out of the landscape very,

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very quickly, leading

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 to increasingly large flood waves

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that cause significant damage.

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This damage is enormously high

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for society."

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That’s why Scholz

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— together with the cities of Leipzig

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and Schkeuditz, the University of Leipzig

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and the environmental association NABU

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— decided to give

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the floodplain landscape here

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a more natural face again.

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"Forty years ago, we already noticed that

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this floodplain forest was undergoing

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a process of expansion.

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Many trees developed here

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that are no longer flood-resistant,

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displacing the tree species typically found

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in the floodplain forest."

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"Oak trees like this one

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and elm trees like this one

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started to die off,

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while other species

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that are a lot less resilient to flooding,

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like maple, started to spread."

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"When the floodplain dries out,

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the sycamore maple,

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which grows right next to it, takes over.

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You can see it very clearly here;

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it also produces a white milky sap.

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And then the other species find it

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really difficult to compete."

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"And the other species are the ones

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that actually protect us against flooding?"

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"Exactly, because those species

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are highly resistant to flooding."

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That’s because those species

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can handle being flooded

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better than others.

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They can also handle droughts better.

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And they suck moisture out of the soil,

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which decreases the amount of water

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contributing to flash flooding events.

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So, the researchers had an idea.

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They started purposely flooding

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a small area of the forest

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every spring for decades.

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And watched what happened.

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"We realized

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that we can maintain moist conditions

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in the forest

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for up to 3 months longer,

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even during drought periods,

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allowing the floodplain forest

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to adapt to these wetter,

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more dynamic conditions.

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At the same time,

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other species

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that do not belong here receded,

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providing space and light for

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tree species typical

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of the floodplain forest."

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They literally trained the forest

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to be able to soak up more water again.

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"Even if trees are flood-resistant,

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if they do not experience flooding

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for a long time,

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they may 'forget'

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how to cope with it or adapt to it."

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Scholz says the data they collected

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over 30 years

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tells the story of an ecosystem

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going back to its natural state.

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This is a 3D model

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of a 7-hectare forest area

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that they flooded and surveyed

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for three decades.

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Just look at

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how many red trees there were

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before they started flooding the area

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— those are untypical,

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sometimes invasive species

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that are not so resilient

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to floods and drought.

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And now look

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how many green trees came back

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once they started flooding the area.

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Those are typical, native floodplain trees,

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which are resistant

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to floods and droughts.

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"Here you can clearly see

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how the maple is dying.

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This area has been underwater

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for several weeks.

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And right next to it

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is the flood-tolerant European ash,

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which looks very healthy."

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They were surprised by how fast

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the forest went back to its natural state

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once they started adjusting

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the water levels.

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"For us, these are nature-based solutions

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to mitigate the extreme events

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we expect from climate change."

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"So, how exactly did they flood the area?"

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"As early as the late 1990s,

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 the city of Leipzig

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began reconnecting old channel systems

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in the floodplain,

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like this one here, the Burgauenbach,

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to the main water bodies

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so that the forest

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could receive water again."

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That’s Reiner Werner,

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who is the head of hydraulic engineering

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and water management.

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"We reconnected

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the still existing

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old historical channel systems,

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meaning we had to restore

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this ditch here by hand in part.

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And then we built an inlet structure

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to channel water

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through the dike back

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into these channel systems."

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They then cut out several parts of the dike

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on the river side

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so that the water can naturally overflow

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into the floodplain.

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"We are seeing clear results

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with the increase in groundwater levels,

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which have been documented.

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Significant results

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are visible and quantifiable

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in the forest in a very short time,

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even with such a small water body."

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"Back then, it was easy to get a permit

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for an undertaking like that."

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"Today, it is much more complicated.

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There are new guidelines, EU regulations,

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that must be followed.

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Much more evidence and estimates

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are required.

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It is not as simple as it used to be."

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But that didn’t stop the city

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from doing more.

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It brought together scientists,

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NGOs and local officials in 2018

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to come up with a concept to rejuvenate

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the entire floodplain

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over the next 30 years.

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"And they just finished their first project.

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They restored this historic riverbed here

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and designed it in a way that

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it can overflow more naturally,

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regularly and predictably

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— like it did in the past

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before we altered rivers."

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"As you can see very well here,

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we have moved the field

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relatively far away from the forest edge,

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creating a huge corridor

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where the waters can meander freely."

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That’s Christiane Frohberg,

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who was responsible for revitalizing

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this old riverbed.

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"We have several exit points where,

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when the flood comes,

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the water can rise and then

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flow over this very shallow bank

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directly into the forest.

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This means that with the newly

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gained 5.5 kilometers,

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which we only finished constructing

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this year,

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we can flood approximately 45 hectares

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of floodplain forest several times a year."

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That’s roughly the size of

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84 football fields.

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"And that’s also good news

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for the animals who live here."

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Fish and rare species of insects

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have already settled in.

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"But it wasn’t easy to get to this point."

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It’s a tricky process

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to find a balance

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between flooding the forest enough

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so it relearns how to suck up more water

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00:08:44.904 --> 00:08:46.467
— and not overflooding it,

288
00:08:46.467 --> 00:08:47.306
otherwise the water

289
00:08:47.306 --> 00:08:48.365
could permanently stay there

290
00:08:48.365 --> 00:08:49.259
like in a bathtub,

291
00:08:49.259 --> 00:08:49.957
which would change

292
00:08:49.957 --> 00:08:50.914
the entire ecosystem.

293
00:08:51.084 --> 00:08:52.131
And you have to consider

294
00:08:52.131 --> 00:08:52.717
different interests.

295
00:08:53.400 --> 00:08:55.111
"We are in a major city,

296
00:08:55.111 --> 00:08:57.195
which means there are many interests

297
00:08:57.195 --> 00:08:58.554
and uses for the forest,

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00:08:58.700 --> 00:09:00.427
with recreational use

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00:09:00.427 --> 00:09:01.606
being very important.

300
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This means that if we flood certain areas

301
00:09:03.728 --> 00:09:05.408
and some paths become inaccessible

302
00:09:05.408 --> 00:09:06.141
in the spring

303
00:09:06.263 --> 00:09:07.759
during high water,

304
00:09:07.759 --> 00:09:10.310
we need to provide information,

305
00:09:10.310 --> 00:09:13.608
raise awareness, or offer alternatives.

306
00:09:13.608 --> 00:09:15.575
However, we have found

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00:09:15.575 --> 00:09:17.298
that there is also a very high level

308
00:09:17.298 --> 00:09:18.694
of acceptance among the population,

309
00:09:18.694 --> 00:09:20.259
who deal with the situation

310
00:09:20.259 --> 00:09:20.935
very creatively."

311
00:09:26.455 --> 00:09:28.431
"I am so very happy right now.

312
00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:32.216
Yes, because it was simply years

313
00:09:32.216 --> 00:09:34.201
of talking to people every day,

314
00:09:34.400 --> 00:09:36.645
ensuring that they are not afraid

315
00:09:36.645 --> 00:09:38.303
when a bit of water comes in here.

316
00:09:38.303 --> 00:09:40.569
And it's just wonderful to see

317
00:09:40.569 --> 00:09:43.711
that we now have water in this small river,

318
00:09:43.711 --> 00:09:45.000
which nevertheless

319
00:09:45.000 --> 00:09:47.028
 has a significant impact."

320
00:09:47.684 --> 00:09:49.319
It’s not just people using the forest

321
00:09:49.319 --> 00:09:50.610
for recreational purposes

322
00:09:50.756 --> 00:09:51.797
who needed to be convinced

323
00:09:51.797 --> 00:09:52.827
about the flooding plans.

324
00:09:52.949 --> 00:09:54.766
Local farmers had to be onboard as well.

325
00:09:55.957 --> 00:09:57.913
"You can't simply expropriate people

326
00:09:57.913 --> 00:09:59.246
without offering alternatives.

327
00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:01.803
Bringing more water into the landscape

328
00:10:01.803 --> 00:10:03.421
doesn’t necessarily mean

329
00:10:03.421 --> 00:10:04.582
giving up agricultural use;

330
00:10:04.582 --> 00:10:06.280
it just means that agricultural practices

331
00:10:06.280 --> 00:10:07.204
need to be adapted.

332
00:10:07.204 --> 00:10:08.818
So, this means that a transition

333
00:10:08.818 --> 00:10:10.653
from arable land to a wild meadow

334
00:10:10.653 --> 00:10:11.334
ultimately has to happen,

335
00:10:11.334 --> 00:10:12.312
but this change must

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00:10:12.312 --> 00:10:13.160
also be appropriately compensated."

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00:10:13.160 --> 00:10:13.700
That means

338
00:10:13.700 --> 00:10:15.384
instead of planting corn and rapeseed

339
00:10:15.384 --> 00:10:16.242
on all of their land,

340
00:10:16.363 --> 00:10:18.374
farmers would plant grass in some areas

341
00:10:18.374 --> 00:10:19.682
and sell the hay instead.

342
00:10:20.000 --> 00:10:20.775
They would also receive

343
00:10:20.775 --> 00:10:22.339
a compensation payment, Scholz says.

344
00:10:24.260 --> 00:10:26.113
The goal for the next 10-15 years

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00:10:26.113 --> 00:10:26.990
is to revitalize

346
00:10:26.990 --> 00:10:28.142
more than 16 km

347
00:10:28.142 --> 00:10:29.500
of former arms along the river.

348
00:10:29.792 --> 00:10:30.868
They want to reconnect

349
00:10:30.868 --> 00:10:32.290
dried-up river arms and inundate

350
00:10:32.290 --> 00:10:34.176
at least 30% of the floodplain area

351
00:10:34.176 --> 00:10:35.203
via the new river,

352
00:10:35.519 --> 00:10:36.493
so that instead of this…

353
00:10:37.174 --> 00:10:38.651
the area will look like this.

354
00:10:41.228 --> 00:10:42.028
"And here,

355
00:10:42.028 --> 00:10:42.879
they already started turning

356
00:10:42.879 --> 00:10:44.814
 former farmland into a floodplain forest."

357
00:10:45.398 --> 00:10:47.362
They planted species resilient to flooding

358
00:10:47.362 --> 00:10:48.832
so that future flood waters

359
00:10:48.832 --> 00:10:49.871
can be sucked up by the plants

360
00:10:49.871 --> 00:10:50.371
like a sponge.

361
00:10:51.067 --> 00:10:51.982
That way, Scholz says

362
00:10:51.982 --> 00:10:53.370
they can also get more water

363
00:10:53.370 --> 00:10:54.063
to stay in the ground.

364
00:10:55.789 --> 00:10:57.033
Of course, projects like this

365
00:10:57.033 --> 00:10:58.351
come with a hefty price tag.

366
00:10:58.764 --> 00:11:00.237
The city of Leipzig already spent

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00:11:00.237 --> 00:11:01.718
6.5 million euros

368
00:11:01.913 --> 00:11:03.384
– largely funded by the German state –

369
00:11:03.676 --> 00:11:05.428
to buy back land and build new bridges

370
00:11:05.428 --> 00:11:06.132
and gateways

371
00:11:06.132 --> 00:11:07.654
for crossing the newly restored river.

372
00:11:08.040 --> 00:11:11.518
"It will require a truly great effort

373
00:11:11.518 --> 00:11:13.304
to get this project

374
00:11:13.304 --> 00:11:15.075
approved here in the region

375
00:11:15.075 --> 00:11:17.615
and by the permitting authorities,

376
00:11:17.615 --> 00:11:19.942
so that further steps can be taken

377
00:11:19.942 --> 00:11:21.094
for the preservation

378
00:11:21.094 --> 00:11:23.253
of the floodplain forest,

379
00:11:23.423 --> 00:11:24.432
and to secure funding

380
00:11:24.432 --> 00:11:26.503
in the tens of millions."

381
00:11:26.722 --> 00:11:27.730
It sounds like a lot

382
00:11:27.730 --> 00:11:28.953
– but flooding is actually

383
00:11:28.953 --> 00:11:29.902
the most expensive

384
00:11:29.902 --> 00:11:31.078
natural hazard in Europe...

385
00:11:31.346 --> 00:11:32.655
with one study estimating

386
00:11:32.655 --> 00:11:34.069
that river-based flood risk

387
00:11:34.166 --> 00:11:37.158
could increase seven-fold to €6.8 billion

388
00:11:37.158 --> 00:11:38.166
by the end of this century.

389
00:11:38.750 --> 00:11:39.979
Most large European cities

390
00:11:39.979 --> 00:11:41.148
are situated on floodplains...

391
00:11:41.561 --> 00:11:42.297
these are the ones

392
00:11:42.297 --> 00:11:43.359
that are predicted to suffer

393
00:11:43.359 --> 00:11:44.685
a lot of flood damages in the future.

394
00:11:46.630 --> 00:11:47.713
And the changes we’ve made

395
00:11:47.713 --> 00:11:49.020
to most of our waterways

396
00:11:49.117 --> 00:11:50.354
are adding to the flood risk...

397
00:11:50.354 --> 00:11:51.654
not detracting from it.

398
00:11:53.721 --> 00:11:55.611
That’s why EU Environmental Ministers

399
00:11:55.611 --> 00:11:56.457
recently approved

400
00:11:56.457 --> 00:11:58.272
a contested Nature Restoration Law

401
00:11:58.272 --> 00:11:59.872
that seeks to regrow forests,

402
00:11:59.872 --> 00:12:00.814
re-wet peatland

403
00:12:01.003 --> 00:12:02.609
and return rivers to their natural,

404
00:12:02.609 --> 00:12:03.554
free-flowing states.

405
00:12:04.308 --> 00:12:05.604
A move that Scholz welcomes.

406
00:12:07.501 --> 00:12:08.681
"When we consider

407
00:12:08.681 --> 00:12:09.635
the monetary damage

408
00:12:09.635 --> 00:12:10.550
that extreme events

409
00:12:10.550 --> 00:12:12.800
ultimately inflict on our society

410
00:12:12.800 --> 00:12:14.923
and the long-term efforts

411
00:12:14.923 --> 00:12:16.384
required to address them,

412
00:12:16.384 --> 00:12:17.355
it becomes clear

413
00:12:17.355 --> 00:12:21.162
that investing in ecosystem restoration

414
00:12:21.332 --> 00:12:26.232
is a future-proof investment."

415
00:12:26.937 --> 00:12:27.437
That’s why

416
00:12:27.437 --> 00:12:28.726
more and more European cities

417
00:12:28.726 --> 00:12:29.697
situated in floodplains

418
00:12:29.697 --> 00:12:30.570
are experimenting with

419
00:12:30.740 --> 00:12:32.187
nature-based approaches like this.

420
00:12:32.771 --> 00:12:34.216
And the project here in Leipzig

421
00:12:34.216 --> 00:12:35.462
has become a blueprint for others.

422
00:12:35.778 --> 00:12:36.800
Scholz has been cooperating

423
00:12:36.800 --> 00:12:37.984
with colleagues from Estonia,

424
00:12:38.179 --> 00:12:39.042
Spain and Portugal

425
00:12:39.042 --> 00:12:40.711
to share knowledge and best practices,

426
00:12:40.711 --> 00:12:42.792
such as how to retain water in an area

427
00:12:42.792 --> 00:12:43.651
as long as possible.

428
00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:46.420
"And there’s a lot that other countries

429
00:12:46.420 --> 00:12:47.536
can learn from their success."

430
00:12:47.852 --> 00:12:49.208
"Above all, it's important to get

431
00:12:49.208 --> 00:12:50.260
the landowners and tenants,

432
00:12:50.382 --> 00:12:52.964
the farmers, and the foresters on board,

433
00:12:52.964 --> 00:12:55.060
and to make decisions together

434
00:12:55.060 --> 00:12:56.536
with them on-site,

435
00:12:56.536 --> 00:12:58.832
and not just the planners

436
00:12:58.832 --> 00:12:59.424
at the drawing board."

437
00:12:59.740 --> 00:13:02.379
"When nature functions properly,

438
00:13:02.379 --> 00:13:03.699
it works for us,

439
00:13:03.821 --> 00:13:08.233
and we can benefit from nature's services.

440
00:13:08.233 --> 00:13:10.055
And that’s an insurance policy

441
00:13:10.055 --> 00:13:10.632
for the future."

442
00:13:11.338 --> 00:13:12.202
"So, do you think

443
00:13:12.202 --> 00:13:13.322
this nature-based approach

444
00:13:13.322 --> 00:13:14.138
could work where you live?

445
00:13:14.138 --> 00:13:15.071
Let us know in the comments

446
00:13:15.071 --> 00:13:15.728
and subscribe,

447
00:13:15.728 --> 00:13:17.267
we post videos like this every Friday."