Wetlands (willow ponds) have is a unique and poetic riverside landscape in the semi-arid Loess Plateau. Recognizing the importance of preserving this distinctive habitat and native flora and fauna along the Qingshui River, the willow ponds were kept with water supported from the Qingshui River.

This conservation effort becomes increasingly important as the existing landscape along the River continues to disappear. By using the existing drainage route as the main line for the flood canal, the impact of development is minimized. This approach reduces the need for soil displacement and lowers the risk of soil collapse, striking a balance between flood control and environmental preservation.

Furthermore, the design incorporates a soft grass area in the side slope of the canal as much as possible. This choice aims to enhance the aesthetic appeal and livability of the canal area. Additionally, the bottom of the canal is kept permeable,  to improve the overall quality of the canal as a living space.

By carefully considering these design elements, the project seeks to create a harmonious and sustainable flood canal system that not only manages water flow but also preserves and enhances the unique landscape of the semi-arid Loess Plateau.

The design approach for the flood canal seems well-thought-out. Diverting water through a weir into two pathways based on rainfall intensity allows for adaptability during different flood conditions.

Below the 5-year flooding level, the water is directed along a branch line to a wetland area, serving as a means for natural purification and infiltration of the water.

For higher flood levels, the canal incorporates an overtopping mechanism at the diversion weir, diverting excess water to the river via a flood channel, for up to a 50-year return period.

Consideration of various flood levels (5-year, 30-year, and 50-year) is important for erosion control measures. Different design strategies, such as impervious concretion base for the 5-year flood, retaining walls along the slope for the 30-year flood, and pervious surface measures above that level due to low erosion risk, help meet the requirements of each flood level and velocity.

Overall, the design of the flood canal appears to account for ecological concerns, varying flood conditions, and the management of sedimentation and erosion.

During the initial phase of the project, a comprehensive urban flood risk map was created using GIS and HEC-RAS. This map encompasses both the river and the expansive Guyuan metropolitan area, spanning over 150 square kilometers. The model effectively captures crucial data points like flood velocity, inundation areas, duration, and other vital information, laying a strong foundation for informed decision-making and effective flood mitigation strategies.

Before 1990, the area around Bau Sau was under severe pressures from local communities in Dak Lua Commune. Local people often entered the park for harvesting timber, fishing, and hunting animals. Conflicts between locals and forest rangers occurred frequently and seriously (with death, and a ranger station was burnt in 1990).

After establishment, the park managers focused on law enforcement. Number of donor projects in this period helped improving local livelihoods through productive and effective farming, e.g. irrigation, increasing rice crops cultivation from twice to three times/year, high yielding maize. With consensus from local people, households living in the core zone were supported to relocate to the buffer zones. Forest protection contracts were signed with local households, forest protection teams were established in villages around the park. Illegal activities were sharply reduced. Relationship with local communities has been improved, pressures on natural resources has reduced, and the habitat quality has been enhanced.

Along with proactive habitat restoration measures, wild fauna populations recovered rapidly. In addition to the Siamese Crocodile population that was re-established in Bau Sau area, other populations of animals of conservation concerns such as Gaur, and Green Peafowl etc. are well maintained.

Producers must also have to commit not to kill predators and to be part of a more environmentally friendly production. A final key aspect is that the conservationist using this technique will have to invest a considerable amount of time between training the dog, selecting puppy candidates, constant monitoring and much more. If the social factors mentioned before are not taken into account and these commitments are not met, the success of the project would not be possible.

Social factors are important in conflicts between humans and predators. Predation has direct economic costs related to loss of income and food, and indirect economic costs such as time spent avoiding predation. There are also underestimated non-economic costs, related to the sense of uncertainty, insecurity and general disruption to livelihoods caused by the unexpected loss of livestock, which strongly influence human-carnivore interactions. Livestock keepers who choose to join this programme must be prepared to make cultural and behavioural changes, including changing their cultural relationship with predators and dogs.  They must be committed to caring for and managing LGDs in a different way to how they normally interact with dogs. The herder must spend time with the dog in the first few months to ensure that it does not get lost, and must provide food and water on a daily basis.

The establishment of a breeding centre is a fundamental step in carrying out controlled breeding and imprinting of pups. Imprinting is a biological learning process, which is generated in a short period of time, where pups of most species can identify and learn behaviours of any other species. At the centre we provide the conditions for the pups to be in contact with goats and sheep from birth, and until they are four months old, creating a family bond that will make them protective with the livestock. This stage is critical and essential to achieve LGD that are effective in their function and strategic for carnivore conservation. During the imprinting process we take care of the feeding, health, welfare of the puppies and the livestock, while correcting undesirable behaviour in the puppy-livestock bond. After four months the puppies that are already vaccinated, dewormed and neutered, are handed over to the producers where they will finish their training and gradually start working with the livestock.

The EbA measure implemented in Tanta includes both green and gray infrastructure.

The green infrastructure, which is the ecosystems, was improved by promoting appropriate pasture and livestock management practices that contribute to the positive conservation status of the pastures. To this end, work was done to strengthen community organization, the participatory design of the livestock management strategy, and the bolstering of local knowledge.

In terms of gray infrastructure, the community prioritized the construction of a shed to reduce the exposure of livestock to climate hazards intensified by climate change, such as hail, and frost, simultaneously protecting them from strong winds and intense sunlight.

The construction of the shed began with the participatory design of the infrastructure, advised by a professional from the local university and validated in a community assembly. Meetings were then held with the livestock department (committee) and directors to plan out the work and the transfer of materials. Prior to the start of construction, the community made an offering to the mountain, a custom they still maintain.

The shed is now operational, the community reports a decrease in animal mortality, and maintenance is being carried out, especially on the roof, using local materials.

Under the "Strengthening community organization" component, the project worked with the Tanta community to develop a livestock management strategy, with the support of a specialist, to improve livestock management in the community’s farm territory. The objective was to fortify the community’s collective decision-making process in regards to the management of its natural resources, thus contributing to the recovery of grazing areas, which in turn ensures having the necessary level of food for livestock and improving both productivity and ecosystem services for water regulation.

The livestock management strategy has been the product of a participatory process facilitated by Instituto de Montaña and led by the authorities and the community's livestock department (committee). As part of this process, visual materials (maps and infographics) have been developed to graphically represent the proposed management plan and rotation of livestock among the different sectors of the communal farm. These visual materials are exhibited in the community premises so that the community members can follow up on the plan and the agreements and commitments made by all.

Partnerships with the provincial Taskforce, which oversaw the project's activities in general, and the provincial Agriculture Extension Center and Farmers’ Union helped achieve the expected results despite travel restrictions owing to COVID-19.

Partnerships with these local partners also led to the later integration of the project’s interventions into provincial partner’s programmes.