ICPR – International Commission for the Protection of the Rhine

Successes of the programme “Rhine 2020” in the field of ecology

  • Since 2000, about 140 km² of floodplains have been reactivated and 124 floodplain waters have been reconnected to the main stream of the Rhine. More information in the report on the biotope network (only available in German, French and Dutch) here.
  • 166 km of riverbanks on the Rhine were ecologically upgraded.
  • Today, several hundred salmon return annually from the North Sea to the accessible tributaries of the Rhine and reproduce naturally. Further information in the Master Plan Migratory Fish.
  • A milestone for the restoration of migratory fish returns from the sea into the Rhine and Meuse systems was reached at the end of 2018 with the partial opening of the Haringvliet Dam south of Rotterdam.
  • On the Upper Rhine, after the fish ways at the large barrages in Iffezheim (2000) and Gambsheim (2006), the fish ways in Strasbourg (2015) and Gerstheim (2019) have also become operational. For more information, see the results report of the Upper Rhine Project Group (only available in German, French and Dutch).