Revitalization of the Danube source Better quality of life for people and nature

"Brigach and Breg bring the Danube to Weg".



The aim of revitalizing the source of the Danube was to achieve good ecological status of the watercourse in accordance with the European Water Framework Directive. At the same time, the source of the second longest river in Europe was freed from the corset of river building blocks and redesigned in a natural and exciting way for people and nature.



The Brigach, Breg and Danube were straightened in earlier decades or centuries. The water environment, the former floodplain, was and is used intensively by humans. Typical watercourse structures and the self-dynamic development of the watercourses were largely absent. The habitat for aquatic and floodplain-dwelling plants and animals was only available to a very limited extent.



"The wheel of time cannot be turned back", intensive use and structural infrastructure in the immediate vicinity of the watercourses prevent this. Nevertheless, the measure has given the watercourse more space to develop naturally and dynamically.



During the revitalization of the Danube source, the foreland in the lower reaches of the Breg was removed down to the existing gravel layer and the existing bank reinforcement was removed. Deadwood as a structural element promotes self-dynamic development within the existing watercourse profile. This allowed suitable habitats for fish and fish food animals to develop and be preserved.



The use of hydropower in the princely park was abandoned so that the weir in Allmendshofen could be demolished and the river's continuity restored. As a result, significantly more water remains in the riverbed of the Breg, especially at low water levels (full water section); the river's own dynamic development is encouraged.



In the Brigach, it was not possible to intervene as extensively as in the Breg due to the existing flood protection and infrastructure. Nevertheless, the ecological status should also be improved here through flow-directing measures.



The core of the measure was the new estuary area and the beginning of the Danube, approx. 300 meters above the previous confluence. The space for the creation of a dynamic river landscape was created by the large-scale removal of the land on which the facilities of the former Kreistierheim and the dog sports club had previously stood. At the same time, the Breg was diverted approx. 150 m south of the current Grundbrücke bridge and now flows into the Brigach approx. 300 m to the west. A new bridge for the Brigachweg was built over the new watercourse for this purpose.



The approx. 50,000 m³ of excavated earth from the project was used to build a visual and noise barrier to the east of the estuary area towards the main road. Woody plants have developed there through initial planting and succession. At the same time, the hill, which is up to 9 m high, offers beautiful views of the confluence



The Danube source was officially opened on June 30, 2022. Since then, nature has continued to shape the new floodplain. Broad-based monitoring accompanies this process.