Renewal historic sluice first step in Hörd floodplain project

The Hördt floodplain reserve retention area is part of the differentiated system of flood protection in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. This area protects the upper Rhine valley between Karlsruhe and Mannheim against inundations higher than a 200 year flood-event return interval.

The first step of the project is the renewal of a historic sluice which leads the Michelsbach, the main stream of the area, into the river Rhine. This project part started in June 2011 and will be finished in 2012.

The Hördt floodplain covers an 870 ha area of wetland forest, meadows and agricultural areas, surrounded by several old branches of the river Rhine. The project includes the strengthening of the existing front dyke and the arrangement of three bars of 300 m length. At the event of an extreme flood, it allows the water to get into the reserve area and into the construction of a new rear warded main dyke with several sluices and pumping stations that should bring the incoming watercourses into the reserve area. The project will be complemented by an ecological flooding system of the former river branches by constructing three passages, which let Rhine water into the deepest spaces of the area. The capacity of the reserve retention area is nearly 36 million cubic meters, the total costs will amount up to 57 million euro.

Picture: constructions side at Michelsbach, provided by SGD Süd RP