August 2014 Academic & Specialist Chelsea Green

Let the Water Do the Work: Induced Meandering, an Evolving Method for Restoring Incised Channels Bill Zeedyk, Van Clothier

Let the Water Do the Work is an important contribution to riparian restoration. By “thinking like a creek,” one can harness the regenerative power of floods to reshape stream banks and rebuild floodplains along gullied stream channels. Induced Meandering is an artful blend of the natural sciences – geomorphology, hydrology and ecology – which govern channel forming processes. Induced Meandering directly challenges the dominant paradigm of river and creek stabilization by promoting the intentional erosion of selected banks while fostering deposition of eroded materials on an evolving floodplain. The river self -heals as the growth of native riparian vegetation accelerates the meandering process.