Europe Removed 542 Dams And Barriers In 2024, Dam Removal Europe Report Says

In 2024, Europe removed 542 dams and river barriers that were obstructing rivers, according to the annual report of Dam Removal Europe.

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CNN

The report says the removals marked an 11% increase compared with 2023, and it adds that 90% of the barriers eliminated were small structures often under 2 meters in height.

CNN

It also links the removals to biodiversity gains by noting that the population of migratory fish has decreased by 75% since 1970 due to river fragmentation.

The same reporting highlights that in 2024, 23 European countries removed at least one barrier, with Finland leading with 138 removals, followed by France with 128, Spain with 96, Sweden with 45, and the United Kingdom with 28.

In Italy, the report says the river Giovenco benefited from the removal of five barriers, returning 11 kilometers of river course completely free after decades.

The reporting frames the removals as a way to reopen migratory routes for fish, with La Nuova Ecologia describing how the drastic decline of migratory fish populations—about 75% since 1970—has been observed alongside river fragmentation.

It adds that the Nature restoration law sets a legally binding objective to restore at least 25,000 kilometers of rivers to a free-flowing state by 2030, and it says EU member states must present an action plan by mid-2026.

eHabitat.it

In parallel, Euronews says freshwater migratory fish have declined by 93% in Europe over the past 50 years, and it quotes Herman Wanningen saying, "Removing dams is the most effective tool for restoring free-flowing rivers full of fish."

Euronews also points to the scale of the problem, saying there are currently more than a million dams on European waterways and that at least 150,000 are obsolete.

CNN similarly describes the immediate effect of removing barriers, quoting Angela Ortigara: "Once you take a barrier out, the river takes over," and it ties the work to the EU goal of restoring 25,000 kilometers by 2030.

The sources describe the removals as part of a broader push to reduce fragmentation and restore river connectivity, with CNN saying Dam Removal Europe reported that a record 603 barriers were removed across 21 countries in 2025.

“Environmentalists celebrate the removal of 200 dams from Europe’s rivers in 2021, a record, but there is still a lot to be done”

Euronews

CNN adds that those removals helped reconnect more than 3,740 kilometers of rivers across the continent, and it says the 2025 figure surpassed the previous record set in 2024 by 11%.

At the same time, CNN warns that fragmented rivers can raise water temperature and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, quoting Pao Fernández-Garrido that "Organic material trapped in reservoirs accumulates and decomposes over time, releasing methane".

The reporting also ties the stakes to biodiversity and risk, with CNN stating that river fragmentation is a major contributor to the decline of freshwater biodiversity in Europe and citing that more than 42% of the continent’s freshwater fish species are threatened.

In the European policy timeline, La Nuova Ecologia says the regulation entered into force on 18 August 2024 and that states must agree on a plan by mid-2026, while eHabitat.it says the removals are already accelerating even before those plans are submitted.