On Tuesday, 7 June the Delta Programme Commissioner kicked off the General Consultations of the Forum for Urban Renewal, focused on “climate adaptation”. This was an excellent choice of themes, because in the preceding weeks the urgency for being well-prepared for climate adaptation in the Netherlands was manifested quite clearly. Short, heavy downpours in the south-eastern and eastern parts of the country caused a great deal of damage and trouble. According to the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), severe downpours will occur more frequently in the future. This is in line with the climate change expected. Proper preparation is therefore essential.
In his opening address, Wim Kuijken indicated that we urgently need to start working on climate adaptation. ‘That is why we took the Delta Decision on Spatial Adaptation in 2014, with the ambition of having the Netherlands climate-proof and water-resilient by 2050.’ This makes spatial adaptation, along with flood risk management and the availability of water, a fully-fledged third pillar of the Delta Programme. ‘It is of paramount importance that we will eventually be able to cope with the extremes in the changing weather in our cities and villages. Efforts are already being expended in, for example, Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Twente, but we really need to pick up the pace. The key question is, how can we reinforce our organisational capacity in such a manner that the proper considerations are made on time and actual measures are taken?’
The opening address was followed by three speakers. Kees Christiaanse, professor at ETH Zurich, gave a brief presentation on resilient urban design, illustrating with examples from all across the globe how to make cities more resilient and climate-adaptive. Subsequently, Han Meyer, professor of urban development at Delft University of Technology, discussed the adaptive Delta metropolis, highlighting the Rotterdam region as an example. He made a case for increasing the connection between adaptive delta management, economic transition, and metropolisation in this area. The final speaker was Roelof Bleker, Chair of the Rivierenland district water board. His presentation, entitled “Climate as an Opportunity”, focused on the opportunities climate adaptation offers not only to prepare cities and villages for climate change, but also to add quality to urban spaces.
The discussion that followed quickly revealed that a great deal of expertise has already been amassed with respect to measures to be taken and spatial interventions. The major challenge involves the actual implementation of such measures and spatial interventions on a larger scale. This calls for a more profound consideration of the underlying funding mechanisms, but the delegates also indicated their need for a “speck on the horizon” – from the governments –to legitimise climate adaptation measures. Creating “new momentum” around spatial adaptation would be quite useful in this respect.