A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh
Protecting against riverbank erosion along the world’s largest rivers is challenging. The Bangladesh Delta, bisected by the Brahmaputra River (also called the Jamuna River), is rife with complexity. Here, an emerging middle-income country with the world’s highest population density coexists with the...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-10-01
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| Series: | Water |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/11/3018 |
| _version_ | 1797549711583870976 |
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| author | Knut Oberhagemann A. M. Aminul Haque Angela Thompson |
| author_facet | Knut Oberhagemann A. M. Aminul Haque Angela Thompson |
| author_sort | Knut Oberhagemann |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Protecting against riverbank erosion along the world’s largest rivers is challenging. The Bangladesh Delta, bisected by the Brahmaputra River (also called the Jamuna River), is rife with complexity. Here, an emerging middle-income country with the world’s highest population density coexists with the world’s most unpredictable and largest braided, sand-bed river. Bangladesh has struggled over decades to protect against the onslaught of a continuously widening river corridor. Many of the principles implemented successfully in other parts of the world failed in Bangladesh. To this end, Bangladesh embarked on intensive knowledge-based developments and piloted new technologies. After two decades, successful, sustainable, low-cost riverbank protection technology was developed, suitable for the challenging river conditions. It was necessary to accept that no construction is permanent in this morphologically dynamic environment. What was initially born out of fund shortages became a cost-effective, systematic and adaptive approach to riverbank protection using improved knowledge, new materials, and new techniques, in the form of geobag revetments. This article provides an overview of the challenges faced when attempting to stabilize the riverbanks of the mighty rivers of Bangladesh. An overview of the construction of the major bridge crossings as well as riverbank protection schemes is detailed. Finally, a summary of lessons learned concludes the impressive progress made. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:18:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f7fcb121d0424f3c9a7b9b4e03b13cdb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4441 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:18:22Z |
| publishDate | 2020-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Water |
| spelling | doaj.art-f7fcb121d0424f3c9a7b9b4e03b13cdb2023-11-20T18:44:16ZengMDPI AGWater2073-44412020-10-011211301810.3390/w12113018A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in BangladeshKnut Oberhagemann0A. M. Aminul Haque1Angela Thompson2Northwest Hydraulic Consultants, Edmonton, AB T6X 0E3, CanadaBangladesh Water Development Board, Dhaka 1205, BangladeshNorthwest Hydraulic Consultants, Edmonton, AB T6X 0E3, CanadaProtecting against riverbank erosion along the world’s largest rivers is challenging. The Bangladesh Delta, bisected by the Brahmaputra River (also called the Jamuna River), is rife with complexity. Here, an emerging middle-income country with the world’s highest population density coexists with the world’s most unpredictable and largest braided, sand-bed river. Bangladesh has struggled over decades to protect against the onslaught of a continuously widening river corridor. Many of the principles implemented successfully in other parts of the world failed in Bangladesh. To this end, Bangladesh embarked on intensive knowledge-based developments and piloted new technologies. After two decades, successful, sustainable, low-cost riverbank protection technology was developed, suitable for the challenging river conditions. It was necessary to accept that no construction is permanent in this morphologically dynamic environment. What was initially born out of fund shortages became a cost-effective, systematic and adaptive approach to riverbank protection using improved knowledge, new materials, and new techniques, in the form of geobag revetments. This article provides an overview of the challenges faced when attempting to stabilize the riverbanks of the mighty rivers of Bangladesh. An overview of the construction of the major bridge crossings as well as riverbank protection schemes is detailed. Finally, a summary of lessons learned concludes the impressive progress made.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/11/3018BrahmaputraBangladeshriverbank protectionriver traininggeobag revetmentsadaptive approach |
| spellingShingle | Knut Oberhagemann A. M. Aminul Haque Angela Thompson A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh Water Brahmaputra Bangladesh riverbank protection river training geobag revetments adaptive approach |
| title | A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh |
| title_full | A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh |
| title_fullStr | A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh |
| title_short | A Century of Riverbank Protection and River Training in Bangladesh |
| title_sort | century of riverbank protection and river training in bangladesh |
| topic | Brahmaputra Bangladesh riverbank protection river training geobag revetments adaptive approach |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/12/11/3018 |
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