#RestoreNature webinar: restoring free-flowing rivers under the Nature Restoration Law by removing barriers
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Advocacy
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Rivers and Lakes
The Nature Restoration Law (NRL) formally adopted on 18 August 2024 states in its Article 9 that EU Member States must restore at least 25.000 km of rivers into free-flowing rivers by the end of 2030. Aiming to guide Member State representatives in achieving this target, Living Rivers Europe (which we are part of) together with the #RestoreNature coalition organised a public webinar on 11 September, 2025.
Our freshwater policy officer Irene Duque and Ioannis Agapakis from the environemntal NGO ClientEarth co-moderated the webinar, gathering over 170 participants. Europe’s rivers are more fragmented than ever with more than 1.2 million barriers cut across 36 countries and many of them obsolete yet still blocking wildlife and posing safety risks.
Our freshwater policy officer Irene Duque presented the main findings of Living Rivers Europe and Client Earth’s recent legal report on the content and obligations of the Article 9 of the NRL, namely: the inventory of barriers, the identification and removal of priority barriers, the restoration of floodplains, and the obligation to maintain connectivity once it is restored.
Speakers Highlights
Pao Fernández Garrido (Open Rivers Programme) started the panel by presenting the advantages of removing obsolete barriers for both ecosystems and the cities. She highlighted an example of the removal of San Marcos weir in León (Spain), which prevented flood damages in 2014 and 2019 that would have exceeded the cost of removal, stating that «Most negative environmental impacts have at some point negative economic impact, and that’s why solving these problems has a direct or indirect economic benefit».
Benjamin Jeannot, Water policy officer at the European Commission (DG Environment) then presented the obligations to fill in the national restoration plans under Article 9 of the NRL. To achieve the 25,000 km of free-flowing river target by 2030, the European Commission has set up a clear agenda with key dates for the Member States to take into account. He notably explained that «Member states must submit National Restoration Plans by September 2026 with detailed inventories and removal plans», insisting on the rigorous application of the norms.
The basis of Article 9 being explained, the third speaker Andrea Goltara, managing director of our member the Italian Centre for River Restoration (CIRF) focused on the 25.000 km target itself and the technicalities behind it: «If any such barrier is present, it means the river cannot be free-flowing».
Speakers underlined that removing barriers not only reconnects rivers for fish and sediment flow but also reduces flood risk, cuts maintenance costs, prevents harmful algae blooms, and contributes to climate adaptation.
Building Upon Local Experiences
National experiences of barrier removal and their impact were also presented by Marie Pfeiffer (Freshwater expert at WWF Austria) and Lucas Barrero (Ecological Restoration Technician at Ecologistas en Acción):
- Austria: While river restoration initially sparked political backlash, strong communication and public engagement helped turn the narrative around, showing restoration as a win for both people and nature. Coordination across multiple jurisdictions remains a challenge.
- Spain: Despite early progress, restoration projects faced delays when barrier removal was misrepresented in some media outlets, which wrongly linked these removals with the floods in Valencia in October 2024. Today, most projects are smaller in scale and struggle with fragmented governance.
What’s next?
The webinar highlighted the huge potential of barrier removal as a cost-efficient measure providing a wide range of co-benefits across different policies. Success will depend not only on strong legal obligations and technical expertise but also on clear communication, community engagement, and political will.
Our forests, rivers, and wildlife can’t speak for themselves: raise your voice, protect what’s left, and demand #HandsOffNature.