Review article
https://doi.org/10.21861/HGG.2026.88.01.01
Floodplain restoration: development and research approaches
Mladen Plantak
orcid.org/0009-0007-5938-3084
; Elektroprojekt d.d., Zagreb, Croatia
*
Danijel Orešić
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science, Department of Geography, Zagreb, Croatia
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
The floodplains of many rivers have been modified by various anthropogenic influences, and recently there has been a growing awareness of the need for floodplain restoration, primarily for better flood protection, climate change mitigation and improvement of the ecological status of streams. The initiative of many European Union bodies has significantly contributed to the development of strategies and the creation of many projects related to the floodplain restoration. This paper provides an overview and development of floodplain restoration research over the last 25 years related to floodplain delineation, which has evolved from simple models to hydrological-hydraulic models, and more recently to complex models that include multi-criteria analyses. It also provides an overview of approaches related to assessing the suitability or potential of floodplain restoration, where it has been determined that a combination of multiple data sources is most often used to eliminate uncertainties and more accurately define the condition and suitability for floodplain restoration. The direction of movement and development of restoration is moving towards integrated approaches with multidisciplinary teams.
Keywords
floodplain restoration; assessing potential; delineation; hydromorphology; European Union
Hrčak ID:
347883
URI
Publication date:
17.6.2026.
Visits: 133 *