Bank erosion is a natural process: with out river banks, rivers would not meander and change course. But, land management patterns which change the hydrograph and/or vegetation cover can act to increase or decrease channel migration rates. In many areas, whether or not the banks are unstable due to human actions, people attempt to keep a river in a single location. This can be done for environmental reclamation or to stop a river from shifting course into territory that’s being used by people. One way that this is achieved is by simply placing riprap or gabions across the bank.