Lake Baldeney: Work to re-route the water below the weir is due to begin in August

The Ruhrverband has commissioned a specialist hydraulic engineering firm to backfill the scour holes in the riverbed below the tailwater sill of the weir at Lake Baldeney, which were caused by the extreme flooding in July 2021. Site preparation for the works will begin in August 2026 on the right bank of the Ruhr at the Düsseldorf District Government’s transhipment yard, approximately 420 metres downstream of the weir (Freiherr-vom-Stein-Straße 60) and on the left bank of the Ruhr at the car parks by the steps leading up to the weir (Hardenbergufer 91).

The scour holes will be filled by relocating the sediments that have formed smaller islands further downstream. These islands, which were previously used as nesting sites by waterbirds, will be removed as part of the construction work. The Ruhrverband
has coordinated this measure, which is necessary for flood protection, with the Düsseldorf District Government and the Local Nature Conservation Authority of the City of Essen. Work will commence in consultation with a consultancy firm specialising in landscape planning and applied ecology, commissioned by the Ruhrverband, which has carried out site inspections to ensure that no breeding activities will be affected by the works. All young birds that hatched on the islands this year have now left their nests, and the vegetation on the sediment islands was subsequently removed.

In order to better protect the riverbed area directly below the tailwater sill – which was severely affected in July 2021 – during future flood events, the area will be made erosion-resistant using interlocking hydraulic blocks once the scour holes have been backfilled. The left-bank revetments will also be restored. 

The Ruhrverband asks for your understanding regarding any noise, restrictions on leisure activities or traffic disruption caused by construction vehicles on the Hardenberg bank during the necessary construction work.