Bunding

A bund is an embankment or dyke. Bunding refers to the construction of a thick wall including an embankment (a thick wall of earth), dyke (a thick wall), dam (a wall), levee (a raised bank), or weir (a low barrier), etc. that may restrict water flow over the ground and/or raise water levels. Bunds are often either earthen, rock, or concrete in material.

Quick links

• Wetland classification scheme
• Wetlands mapping data fields - Hydrological modifications (habitat scale)
• Wetlands mapping data fields - Hydrological modifications (landscape scale)
• Wetlands mapping attributes - Hydrological modifications (habitat scale)
• Wetlands mapping attributes - Hydrological modifications (landscape scale)
• Wetlands mapping classification table - Hydrological modifications

Bunding – Bund outside a channel

Select from the tabs below

• Bund creating an artificial wetland
• Bund in a channel
• Bund outside a channel

A bund on a wetland outside a channel often raises or stabilises water levels in the wetland and can make the water persist longer.

Bund within a palustrine or lacustrine wetland

A bund in a palustrine or lacustrine wetland may raise or stabilise water levels in the wetland and increase wetland extent and water permanency. In some cases, bunding in a palustrine wetland may increase wetland extent and depth to such a degree that the wetland is converted to a lacustrine wetland system.

Applicable Wetland Habitat Hydrological Modification:

• ‘Modified - bunding outside a channel – freshwater wetland with no system change’ (H2-M2-a)
• ‘Modified - bunding outside a channel – freshwater wetland with system change’ (H2-M2-c)

Bund in an intertidal wetland

A bund in an intertidal wetland may restrict the landward movement of tidal water interfering with the existing tidal inundation regime. This may also raise or stabilise freshwater water levels. Bunding may completely exclude tidal inundation (see ‘a’) or may enable some continued tidal inundation (see ‘b’). Exclusion of tidal inundation can cause the wetland immediately upstream of the bund to change to a palustrine or lacustrine wetland system. Note that tidal inundation does not always equate to saline inundation as the upper limit of the tide may be fresh water that is moved by the tidal movements.

Applicable Wetland Habitat Hydrological Modification:

• ‘Modified – bunding outside a channel – intertidal wetland with no system change’ (H2-M2-b)
• ‘Modified – bunding outside a channel – intertidal wetland with system change’ (H2-M2-d)