Climate change involves uncertainties. We don’t know exactly what the Netherlands will look like in the future. Our country is preparing for a range of scenarios. In the Delta Programme, the government looks a long way ahead and implements additional measures when needed. Not all measures are fixed for the next 50 to 100 years; there is also flexibility to allow for new solutions.  

The Delta Programme investigates which short- and long-term solutions are needed to protect the Netherlands from high water, to safeguard adequate supplies of fresh water and to structure our country in climate-resilient and water-robust ways. It is difficult, and usually not desirable, to set out measures in every detail at present for the next 50 to 100 years. It must be possible to adapt solutions in line with new insights and circumstances. At the same time, we must prepare. It should not be forgotten that it took decades to complete the Delta Works. We also want to make sure that, when the solutions are needed, they can be put into place with at the least possible cost. So what matters is to take the right steps at the right time. 

This approach is known as adaptive delta management: taking the right steps at the right time. Flexibility where possible, adaptation as soon as needed. Given the pace of climate change, there are concerns about whether the Netherlands can adapt quickly enough. It can be done, but we need to manage water differently. And use and plan our country differently.  

Regular intervals

The Delta Programme answers a number of questions at regular intervals:  

  • Are we still on schedule: are operations proceeding according to schedule and are we achieving our objectives?  
  • Are we still on track: are there any new developments that warrant changes to decisions made in the past?  
  • Integrated approach: are we addressing the agendas in integrated ways?  
  • Participation: is there broad participation from government authorities, business, stakeholder organisations and citizens where required?  

The Delta Commissioner reports each year, on Prinsjesdag (the state opening of Parliament in the Netherlands), about the implementation of the delta plans, presenting concrete proposals and measures for the years ahead.  

Six-yearly periodical evaluation

The world around us is changing and new insights are emerging. The effects of measures are becoming clearer and we are learning more about climate change. As a result, there is a periodical evaluation every six years of the delta decisions and regional strategies. Is the Delta Programme on schedule? Or is a change of course needed? And if so, how? The 2021 Delta Programme (Dutch) set out the results of the first periodical evaluation in the form of updated delta decisions and preferred strategies.  

We will be conducting the second six-yearly periodical evaluation through to the mid-2026. The results will be presented in the 2027 Delta Programme. This periodical evaluation emphasises the interdependence of agendas and solutions. This is particularly true with respect to the links with areas such as housing, nature development and the economy. National and regional decisions have to be made in the water system, water management and spatial planning. The challenges are getting larger because of gradual, unpredictable and extreme climate changes in combination with socioeconomic developments. Because even without climate change, freshwater availability and land subsidence demand a change in the approach.  

In 2025, we are carefully drawing up a description of the options for adaptation. That includes looking at the effects or impact from a national and regional perspective. We are also determining which decisions are required now, which can be left until the following periodical evaluation and which can wait until later. 

Monitoring

A dedicated Signal Group monitors whether there are any new insights that the Delta Programme should anticipate (Dutch) and advises the Delta Commissioner in this respect annually. The Signal Group consists of people from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), Rijkswaterstaat, Deltares, Wageningen University and Research, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency and Statistics Netherlands, among others. The Signal Group’s last advisory report (Dutch) was published in late 2024.  

The Signal Group pointed out in the past, for example, that we may be seeing accelerated sea level rise (Dutch). That led to the Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management’s initiative in 2019 to launch a long-term Sea Level Rise Knowledge Programme. 

National government and regions together

The water in the Netherlands belongs to us all. Which is why the national government and the regions collaborate on a higher national objective: keeping the Netherlands physically safe and liveable. Water authorities, municipal and provincial authorities, ministries and Rijkswaterstaat are partners in the Delta Programme. But local residents, stakeholder organisations (such as housing corporations and nature managers) and the financial sector are also regular participants in discussions about the measures to be taken. The organisation of the Delta Programme fits in with this unique approach.