- June 10, 2025
- Perspectives
Stream Restoration: A Pathway to Sustainability and Resilience
Jason Claudio-Diaz, PE, CFM
Civil Engineer
In recent decades, stream restoration has emerged as a critical practice for environmental engineers and conservationists to restore the natural integrity of waterways. By re-establishing the ecological health of streams degraded by human activities such as urban development, agriculture, and industrial operations, stream restoration not only enhances biodiversity and water quality but also builds resilience against the adverse effects of the changing climate.
Read on to hear about the benefits stream restoration projects offer for sustainability and resiliency from one of our stream and wetland project experts.
1. Enhancing Water Quality
One of the primary benefits of stream restoration is the improvement of water quality, as functional and healthy streams can filter pollutants and sediment, preventing them from reaching larger bodies of water. Part of the stream restoration process involves planting riparian buffers—vegetated areas along stream banks—to absorb runoff and reduce nutrient loads, safeguarding aquatic ecosystems.
Additionally, urban development increases impervious surfaces like roads and buildings, leading to increased stormwater runoff. Restored streams provide a natural solution for stormwater management by integrating green infrastructure such as rain gardens and bioswales, which can reduce stormwater runoff, decrease erosion, and improve water absorption into the groundwater table to protect the quality of our water.
2. Supporting Biodiversity
Healthy streams are teeming with a variety of life forms, from microorganisms to fish and amphibians. However, when streams are polluted or altered, the delicate balance of these ecosystems is disturbed. Stream restoration is inherently sustainable as it aims to repair and rejuvenate natural hydrological and ecological processes and revive biodiversity. Methods such as creating fish passages, removing invasive species, and reforesting riparian zones with native trees and plants ensure that streams can continue to support rich biodiversity.
3. Flood Mitigation, Infrastructure Protection, and Cost Savings
Stream restoration, including techniques like re-meandering and floodplain expansion, plays a vital role in flood mitigation and infrastructure protection. Re-mandering redirects straightened streams into curving paths to slow water flow and enhance infiltration, reducing the likelihood of flash floods. Additionally, expanding the floodplain allows restored streams to handle higher water volumes during heavy rainfall, thereby minimizing flood impacts on nearby communities.
These restoration efforts stabilize land, preventing erosion-induced property loss and safeguarding infrastructure like bridges, culverts, sewers, and buildings from failures. Stream restoration not only prevents infrastructure failures but also can reduce the need or limit the size of other complementary infrastructure, such as bridges or culverts, providing cost savings for communities.
4. Carbon Sequestration and Storage
Stream restoration can also be used to offset and mitigate greenhouse gases. One way is through carbon sequestration—rehabilitating and enhancing the natural functions of streams leading to increased carbon storage. Riparian vegetation, wetlands, and improved soil health associated with restored streams act as carbon sponges. By absorbing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, these plant buffers mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
Case Study: Urban Stream Restoration in Mecklenburg County, NC
Kimley-Horn provided Mecklenburg County Storm Water Services with planning, environmental permitting, public involvement and outreach, utility coordination, ecological restoration, greenway design, landscape/planting plans, construction drawings, and construction management for the restoration of six miles of Lower Little Sugar Creek.
The Lower Little Sugar Creek project features almost three miles of stream restoration and bank stabilization beginning at Polk Street in Pineville, NC, and ending at the North Carolina-South Carolina state line. The project includes two phases, with three miles constructed and another three miles in final design.
Funded jointly by the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation and Storm Water departments, this $14 million
venture aims to establish significant greenway connections to various existing neighborhoods and enhance water quality.
The stream restoration facilitated the greenway’s implementation by offsetting flood increases caused by the bridges, stabilized the stream banks where the greenway was constructed, and improved water quality throughout the corridor. Designed as self-mitigating, the project offsets its own impacts, creating a more sustainable and resilient area by using natural materials and native vegetation to manage stormwater and adapt to increased impervious areas or changing rainfall patterns. The project has had a positive impact on both the quality of life and the environment in Mecklenburg County.
Restored Streams and Resilient Communities
Stream restoration is crucial for community, environmental, and economic resilience. By creating functioning and resilient ecosystems, we can better manage temperature fluctuations, changes in precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events. Involving local communities in restoration projects fosters stewardship and environmental responsibility, empowering them to preserve and maintain these ecosystems. It also boosts local economies through increased recreational opportunities, such as greenways/trails, fishing, kayaking, and eco-tourism.
These benefits can be realized with a trusted consultant to help guide the stream restoration process, from planning and permitting to construction management and restoration design.
About the Expert
Jason Claudio-Diaz, PE, CFM
Jason has 20 years of experience as a lead project engineer for mitigation and non-mitigation stream and wetland projects. He has successfully implemented restoration projects in several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia, and provides planning, design, and construction administration services on stream restoration projects throughout the Southeast. He has led design for projects in rural and urban settings and in varying climatic areas, including urban, suburban, and rural watersheds. Jason’s primary areas of expertise are project management, feasibility studies, planning, data collection, credit determination, design leadership, hydraulic modeling, construction document preparation, permitting, and construction phase services.