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Investigations of the recent decades have revealed a significant lowering of the river bed of the Danube in
Hungary. This phenomenon can be observed on a long stretch of the Hungarian Danube and it can be
presumed that similar changes occur on other parts of the river beyond the borders. There are several
methods to reveal and to measure the lowering of the channel. Long records of the water level are available
for the trend- and homogeneity analyses. Results show that erosion processes started even at the beginning
of the 20th century. In recent years results of bathymetry are available for the more detailed investigations of
these changes. The main causes of the bed-lowering are river regulation activities, industrial dredging and
decreasing of natural sediment load. Deepening of the river bed has unfavourable effects on the natural
environment, on the navigation and also on the operation of man-made structures in the river. To avert
these injurious effects a complex solution is needed, taking into consideration not just economical but
ecological and social aspects as well.
Key Words : Danube, erosion, river regulation, navigation, sediment, bed load, dredging
1. BACKGROUND
Several investigations of recent decades have
revealed a significant lowering of the river bed of the
Danube in Hungary1,2,). This deepening of the
channel is a result of erosion processes that affect not
discrete sections only but long reaches of the river.
This study is devoted to the Hungarian section of the
Danube but, considering the reasons, it can be
presumed that similar symptoms could be
experienced in other parts of the Danube.
Fig.1 Geomorphologic map of the Danube catchment. The Hungarian section is highlighted..
phenomenon,
consequences.
the
arising
problems
and
water level
cm
annual maxima
Duna - Baja
1901 - 2006
900
800
700
600
Annual means
500
Trend analysis
discharge
m3/s
annual minima
400
annual maxima
Duna- Baja
1930 - 2005
300
7000
200
6000
100
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
5000
Time [year]
4000
2000
Annual means
3000
annual minima
1000
1930 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Time [year]
-50
-74
-150
-123
-200
Komrom
Esztergom
Nagymaros
Fig.6 Decrease of the 15-year averages of the water levels between 1901-2005 at the
gauging stations along the Danube in Hungary
49
-100
-250
Budapest
Dunajvros
-216
Dunafldvr
Paks
-181
-181
-99
Vc
-151
-176
Dombori
-156
Baja
Mohcs
1901-15
1916-30
1931-45
1946-60
1961-75
1976-90
1991-2005
-145
-127
Ercsi
-130
Adony
-81
-70
Deepening, cm
90
89
88
1949
87
1975
86
1981
1998
85
84
2003
83
82
-300
-200
-100
100
200
300
Distance, m
(2) Dredging
Gravel and sand, being dredged from the river, are
valuable raw materials for construction industry.
Therefore above the requirements of low-flow
regulation huge masses of sediment were mined
from the Danube between 1960 and 1990.
According to well-founded estimations, about 70
million m3 of bed material was excavated from the
Danube during the period mentioned2,5). Taking the
affected stretch of the river and an average width of
the bed into consideration, this removed mass
would be enough to cause about 60 cm deepening
of the bed. Of course the effect of dredging can not
be projected onto the river so simply, but obviously
the dredged holes are more or less filled up by the
bed material of the upstream section, causing the
deepening of the channel. Another unfavourable
effect of dredging is that it breaks up the harder,
armoured surface of the bed. The current erodes
the upstream edge of the dredging hole and the
looser layers below will also be accessible for the
energy of the flow.
Because of the problems mentioned above it was
necessary to decrease the dredged amounts as small
as possible. Nowadays industrial dredging is not
allowed. Only river regulation and maintenance of
the navigation way can be the reasons for
dredging.
(3) Decrease of transported sediment
Numerous barrages and reservoirs were built on
the Danube and its tributaries in the second half of
the 20th century6). Regarding the Hungarian
section, first of all the barrages in Germany and
Austria have an essential importance. The barrages
on the Upper Danube are illustrated by a schematic
longitudinal profile in Fig.10.
The flow regime of the Danube was not
considerably influenced by these structures, but the
flow conditions in the channel have essentially
changed. The speed of the flow decreases
significantly in the backwater of a barrage and it
causes the bed load to stop and the 30-40 % of the
suspended load to settle. At the same time,
sediment transport capacity of the water increases
on the downstream of the barrage causing an
increased erosion of the downstream channel
(unless the backwater of the next barrage on the
downstream reaches the section in question).
(b)
In 1983, during an extreme low water
period, there were troubles with the cooling water
of the Paks nuclear power plant, which is supplied
gravitationally from the Danube (the pumps of the
power plant hardly reached the water in the
supplying channel). Later the reach of the river
near Paks was controlled successfully with river
regulation methods and similar problems have not
arisen since then. Nevertheless, nowadays some
deepening of the channel can be observed in the
vicinity of Paks as well. Results of numerical
modelling predict a continuation of this process for
the following decades.
An other fact, calling for a special regard for this
area is that the fords downstream of Paks, acting as
bars, have a significant role keeping the low water
on the required level for the water intake. On the
other hand, these fords represent awkward
obstructions for navigation during low water
periods8).
(a)
To improve the conditions of navigation
is an important aim of river regulation work.
Medium-flow regulation activities have been more
or less finished by nowadays. Taking into
consideration that the horizontal alignment of the
Danube is practically stabilized by cutting many
bends, building bank protection structures and
groynes this work has been accomplished.
However, the bed of the river is still continuously
developing and forming. These changes are at
least partly consequences of earlier interventions.
The most frequent navigation obstructions are
fords, shallows and contractions of the navigation
channel during low water periods. Fords are
continuously building and forming in the changing,
unstable channel calling for a permanent control
of the responsible authorities. More studies,
dealing with the analysis of low water periods and
the efficiency of low water regulation prove that,
52
84
Paks
Dunajvros
86
Baja
88
Dunafldvr
Dombori
90
1966
1976
1984
1990
2004
82
80
1440
1490
1540
Ercsi
Adony
92
Mohcs
94
Budapest
96
1590
1640
Distance, river km
Fig.9
5. CONSEQUENCES
The lowering of the river bed of the Danube is a
complex problem as it has been outlined above. It
has far-reaching effects which require complex
solutions, taking into consideration not just
economical but ecological and social aspects as
well. The most important aims are as follows:
- Improvement of navigation conditions regarding
European standards.
- Provision for the safe operation of water intakes.
- Provision for the water supply of nature
conservation areas and other wetlands, ecological
rehabilitation of oxbow lakes and other dead
branches.
the
REFERENCES
54