The Dutch Rhine branches in the Anthropocene – Importance of events and seizing of opportunities
E. Mosselman
Abstract
The Rhine branches in the Netherlands have been profoundly altered by human interventions in the past 2000 years. Three examples are elaborated to show that these alterations often result from specific events and the seizing of opportunities: the creation of a new Rhine bifurcation at Pannerden, the Room-for-the-River programme, and the mitigation of riverbed scour in the Rhine-Meuse estuary. This makes historical inquiry one of the keys to understanding geomorphological developments in the Anthropocene. For river restoration it holds the lesson that plans can be prepared in ordinary times and then be implemented at the right moment by seizing the opportunities offered by events.
Topics & Concepts
AnthropoceneEstuaryGeologyEnvironmental ethicsEarth sciencePaleontologyOceanographyPhilosophyCoastal wetland ecosystem dynamicsGeology and Paleoclimatology ResearchHydrology and Sediment Transport Processes