Iowa’s River Restoration Toolbox is a recently completed series of best management practices developed to assist designers in stream stabilization and restoration projects in Iowa with proven techniques with emphasis on incorporating natural materials, such as logs, stone, and live plantings.
The Toolbox effort initially researched and merged common engineering and restoration practices. It was then reviewed and adapted by a statewide team of Iowa engineering, river restoration, project management, and aquatic habitat professionals from various cities, state agencies, federal, and non-governmental organizations with a stake in its development. This resource helps design teams evaluate streams and apply successful practices.
The Toolbox contains two main components: An assessment tool, and a series of practice guidelines.
Step 1: Assessing Your Stream Reach and Making Decisions
Understanding driving factors that cause your unstable stream segment to erode or damage infrastructure prior to jumping to solutions leads to stable, cost-effective solutions. Misidentified solutions cause future instabilities in the dynamic stream setting, leading to costly repairs and unintended damage.
Step 2: The Practice Guide
Once a project’s directions are determined, thorough design and proper contractor understandings and execution are the keys for project stability.
Check out the toolbox here: http://www.iowadnr.gov/Environmental-Protection/Water-Quality/River-Restoration/River-Restoration-Toolbox