Wild rivers were forced into straightened riverbeds, swamps were drained, and water levels were carefully monitored throughout the country.
Movement on foot or by pack animals along the riverbeds is possible especially in the dry season.
Deforestation alters regional drainage patterns and riverbeds, diverting streams from existing river-intakes, and demanding new and costly infrastructure.
The riverbed consists mostly of sand and cobbles, with an artificial rubble protection around the bridge piles.
Where the canal crossed the river, silt accumulation in the riverbed made the crossing increasingly difficult.
The forgotten boundary wiggles forlornly through the centre of the reservoirs and gravel pits along the line of the old riverbed.
Critics say that engineering changes to the riverbed will cause damage to bankside vegetation and an overall deterioration of the environment in the surrounding area.
Cultivated areas surrounding the derelict buildings have been destroyed by fire and dried-up riverbeds can also be seen.
