Best Practice Knowledge Base
7.5 Protection of riparian forest
Riparian temperate forest. Jura, France/Switzerland © Hernán Serrano-León
Riparian forests are crucial for their role in improving water quality, controlling erosion, mitigating floods, conserving biodiversity, regulating climate, and connecting ecosystems. They act as natural filters for pollutants, stabilize soils, provide habitats for diverse species, and enhance ecosystem resilience. Protecting these forests involves creating buffer zones, restoring native vegetation, and preventing harmful land use.
I. Guidelines
| Nº | Title | Author | Year | Focus Region | Language | Summary | Link |
| 1 | Restoration and management of riparian forest habitats in Bulgaria | WWF | 2018 | Bulgaria | English | Guide for the management and restoration of riparian forests in Bulgaria | https://wwfeu.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/guidelines_for_restoration_and_management_of_riparian_forest_habitats.pdf |
| 2 | Creating and managing riparian woodland | Broadmeadow & Nisbet - Forest Research | 2024 | United Kingdom | English | Practical guide to riparian forests, their management and their restoration in the United Kingdom. | https://cdn.forestresearch.gov.uk/2024/07/UKFSPG028_Riparian_woodland_web_0108-compressed.pdf |
| 3 | Riparian Vegetation Management | Scottish Environment Protection Agency | 2009 | Scotland | English | Guide to the management of riparian vegetation in Scotland. | https://www.sepa.org.uk/media/151010/wat_sg_44.pdf |
| 4 | Manual técnico de conservación y restauración de ríos y riberas | Camprodon et al. | 2022 | Spain | Spanish | Guide to the management and restoration of rivers (both their hydrology and vegetation) in Spain. | https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8192044 |
| 5 | Manuel de restauration hydromorphologique des cours d'eau | Direction de l'eau, des milieux aquatiques et de l'agriculture (DEMAA) | 2007 | France | French | Guide to the hydrological restoration of rivers in France, that includes information about the vegetation. | https://www.eaufrance.fr/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/01Manuel_restauration.pdf |
| 6 | Chapter 3. Vegetations riveraines (from "Guide des végétations remarquables de la région Ìle-de-France") | Conservatoire Botanique National Bassin Parisien | 2015 | France | French | Detailed description and management recommendations for various riparian vegetation types of Île-de-France (France) | https://cbnbp.mnhn.fr/cbnbp/ressources/telechargements/Guide%20Vegetaux-Tome%202-part%203%20vegetations%20riveraines-Web.pdf |
II. Books or book chapters
| Nº | Title | Author | Chapter | Chapter author | Year | Focus region | Language | Summary | Link |
| 1 | Ecological Restoration | Florentine et al. | Chapter 6: Just Add Water? Wetland and Riparian Restoration | Casanova et al. | 2023 | World | English | Guidelines for restoration wetlands and riparian ecosystems based on different case studies | https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25412-3_6 |
III. Scientific articles
| Nº | Title | Author | Year | Focus region | Language | Type | Summary | Link |
| 1 | Restoring Riparian Ecosystems During the UN-Decade on Ecosystem Restoration: A Global Perspective. | Mohan et al. | 2022 | World | English | Conceptual review | Description of the importance of riparian forests and their problems, as well as restoration approaches | https://doi.org/10.1007/s44177-022-00009-1 |
| 2 | Global Overview of Ecosystem Services Provided by Riparian Vegetation | Riis et al. | 2020 | World | English | Conceptual review | Overview of ecosystem services of riparian vegetation and proposal of a management framework | https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biaa041 |
| 3 | Turquoise is the new green: Restoring and enhancing riparian function in the Anthropocene | Capon & Pettit | 2018 | World | English | Narrative review | Overview of major riparian functions and their drivers and threats, as well as methods to restore them | https://doi.org/10.1111/emr.12326 |
| 4 | Evaluating riparian solutions to multiple stressor problems in river ecosystems — A conceptual study | Feld et al. | 2018 | World | English | Conceptual review | Conceptual framework to evaluate riparian management options | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2018.04.014 |
| 5 | Regeneration of Salicaceae riparian forests in the Northern Hemisphere: A new framework and management tool | González et al. | 2018 | Northern Hemisphere | English | Narrative review | Provides resource managers with a decision tree tool for restoring the regeneration of Salicaceae forests | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.04.069 |
| 6 | Improving river hydromorphological assessment through better integration of riparian vegetation: Scientific evidence and guidelines | González del Tánago et al. | 2021 | Europe | English | Narrative review | Novel hydrological assesment including riparian vegetation. Multi-scale Indicators for characterizing riparian vegetation | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112730 |