After the flooding of 2002, many measures for flood protection have been planned and implemented in Germany. However, the next big flooding event in 2013 showed that technical solutions are not sufficient for the protection of houses, land, and people in endangered areas. Alternatively, flood prevention with ecological protection measures should be focused.

Ecological flood protection focuses on measures which have the objective of preventing flooding. With this, a change from more technical flood protection to a long-term and sustainable flood risk management has been started. Flood risk management covers the reduction of flood damages but also damage prevention. Besides the ecological advantages, the ecological flood protection also results in economic efficiency if co-benefits for recreation, tourism or biodiversity arise and are included in the considerations. When including the expected climate change, the benefits of the ecological flood protection are even greater.

For the implementation of the measures, the selection of suitable planning instruments is essential. Informal instruments which include the participation of local community members and users should be a  focus. Measures for ecological flood protection have a long-term effect and likewise, will not reach their full effectiveness in the short-term. Because of these time gaps between implementation and effect and the huge synergies with the objectives and activities of the German “National Strategy on Biodiversity,” such measures should be initiated as soon as possible. The book chapter is available for [pdf, 70 KB, German] download.