Bamboo structures as a resilient erosion control measure

Climate change means that fire damage and torrential rains are major issues in many parts of the world, stripping watercourses and their ability to attenuate flow in ponds and weirs. Soil bioengineering methods integrate civil engineering techniques with natural materials to obtain fast, effective and economic methods of protecting, restoring and maintaining the natural slowing of water run-off. This study combines both theory and practical installation involving slope instability, erosion, soil hydrology, mountain plant ecology and land-use restoration to protect the slope against erosion and soil mass loss. Using a multidisciplinary approach, the authors explore the exchange of the stabilising role between an initially inert structure and the living material used in a bioengineering work to protect the slope against erosion and soil mass loss. From a case study investigation in Spain, the authors investigate bioengineering structures installed within erosion gullies or on eroded slopes and propose a similar measure for a site in Nepal. The transfer of know-how between eco-engineering works from different geoclimatic conditions is considered where bamboo is not a native species.