Form-based stream restoration promotes the modification of a stream channel to improve stream conditions. Targeted outcomes can include improved water quality, enhanced fish habitat and abundance, as well as increased bank and channel stability. This approach is widely used worldwide, and is supported by various government agencies, including the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA).
Form-based restoration projects can be carried out at various scales, including the reach scale. They can include measures such as the installation of in-stream structures, bank stabilization and more significant channel reconfiguration efforts. Reconfiguration work may focus on channel shape (in terms of sinuosity and meander characteristics), cross-section or channel profile (slope along the channel bed). These alterations affect the dissipation of energy through a channel, which impacts flow velocity and turbulence, water-surface elevations, sediment transport, and scour, among other characteristics.