Alternate bar development in an alpine river following engineering works

•We study the alternate bars formation in an engineered mountainous reach.•Aerial photos, cross-sections, and satellite images are used to perform the study.•We link field observations with theoretical models of alternate bars formation.•A conceptual model is suggested for the evolution of the system toward a confined wandering system.

Formation and development of alternate bars in an engineered mountainous reach of the Arc River, France, is studied using photo analysis, 1D modelling and by applying theoretical and empirical models for alternate bar systems. Alternate bars already existed in the 80s in the form of a stable confined wandering system. In 1994, the river bed was flattened after engineering works. However, aerial photographs and cross-sectional profiles show that bars rapidly recovered within a few years. The alternate bar system evolved rapidly with a reduction of the number of bars and so an increasing bar length. The width-to-depth ratio, the slope change, the bend upstream of the reach, and the sediment supplies are the main controls of bar formation and evolution. The system appears to lead to force bars due to the bend but also due to a bridge in the downstream part of the reach. Nevertheless some free mobile bars are still observed in the middle of the reach. A discussion on the alternate bar formation is provided using empirical and analytical models. Finally, impacts of low flows and vegetation seem to be significant in the stabilization of the system toward a confined wandering system as observed before the engineering works.