Back to Interreg NWE
  2. About us
  3. About us

About us

The ResiRiver project is building on a strong partnership that covers river systems in Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, and The Netherlands. The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Rijkswaterstaat, serves as the lead partner for the Interreg ResiRiver project. The other project partners are City of Dordrecht, Permanent Center for Environmental Initiatives Authie and Canche, The Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration, University of Liège, Voies Navigables de France, SYMSAGEL, LAWPRO, Dundalk Institute of Technology, GRAIE and HAN University of Applied Sciences. 

Although EU and national policies are generally supportive of NbS, the project team has identified some key barriers to mainstreaming and wide-scale application (upscaling) of Nature-based Solutions in North-West Europe. These barriers include insufficient internal knowledge of techniques, as well as the requirements for implementing NbS and a reluctance to use NbS in new plans, programs, and working procedures. There is also a lack of involvement and support from stakeholders, which is essential for implementation and maintenance, and a lack of awareness of the (co)-benefits that NbS can deliver to society, such as recreation, shipping, biodiversity, in addition to flood and drought prevention. 

This project aims to overcome these barriers through a three-pronged approach: 

  • Build a solid base of solutions that contribute to mainstreaming by gathering knowledge and experience from full-scale NbS pilots in the Rhine, Meuse, Weser, Lys, Dromore, and Wantij rivers, as well as from previous experiences in the Rhone and Vesdre in the NWE. 

  • Transfer knowledge and experience through easily accessible general and locally tailored training packages and live demonstrations for both partners and external parties. 

  • Synthesize knowledge and experiences into easily implementable action plans, guidelines, and policies. 

The partnership will accelerate the mainstreaming (and thus upscaling) of NbS by transnational development and implementation of solutions, building upon national best practices. We work in a wide range of (national and transnational) river systems covering the Rhine branches (DE, NL), Meuse (FR, BE, NL), Lys (Schelde) (FR, BE), Weser (D), Dromore (IE), Vesdre (Meuse) (BE), and Rhone (FR, CH). Physical and geographical circumstances vary, and stakeholders operate at different levels. Transnational rivers face additional challenges due to differences in legislation and governance across countries. 

The project will work on disseminating practical knowledge on mainstreaming through training schemes, practical guidelines, and recommendations that enable mainstreaming and create a level playing field for applying NbS. 


The Associated partners within the ResiRiver project are: Leibniz University Hannover, European Centre for River Restoration, Agence de l’Eau Artois Picardie, Service public Wallonie,  Tweed Forum, Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau, Natur & ëmwel/Findation Hëllef dir d’Natur, National Federation of Group Water Schemes, Landkreis Emsland, Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde, Province de Liège, Waterschap Limburg, The office of Public Works, Stichting EcoShape, Building with Nature, Technische Universiteit Delft, faculteit Civiele Techniek en Geowetenschap, Global Center on Adaptation.