Members of the House of Representatives visit the central Netherlands
On Monday 23 September 2013, Members of the Standing Committee on Infrastructure and the Environment made a working visit to the province of Utrecht and De Stichtse Rijnlanden regional water board. The aim of the visit was to gain insight into the water-safety problem in the central Netherlands. Various administrators and experts informed the members of the House about the problems and the approach for tackling them in the Delta Programme. Delta Commissioner Wim Kuijken also spoke with the Standing Committee about the opportunities for protecting the region better and more efficiently from high water.
The central Netherlands is an area that comprises the western part of the province of Utrecht and the eastern part of the province of Zuid-Holland. Dike rings 14, 15 and 44 are located in the region. These are separated from one another by what are referred to as C defences. Most of these defences failed to meet the standards of the last assessment of dikes in 2011 and therefore do not meet the legally required protection level. Strengthening these dikes requires heavy investment with negative consequences for the green heart of Holland and old town centres such as that of Oudewater, which the members of the House toured, guided by Mayor Verhoeve.
The Rivers sub-programme of the Delta Programme, in which among others, the provinces, municipalities and water boards in the central Netherlands region are cooperating, is investigating how a large area of the Randstad urban conurbation can be protected more intelligently, better and more effectively from high river water from the Lek. Wim Kuijken is optimistic about this: “Thanks to the Delta Programme and the working method it uses, the authorities and other stakeholders are working together and there is wide support for a better solution than strengthening the current C defences." It has now been shown that a higher water-safety standard for the dikes on the northern side of the Lek is more cost-efficient than making large-scale investments in the C defences in the central Netherlands. This is also set out in the DP2014 that Minister Schultz van Haegen presented to the House of Representatives last week on Prinsjesdag (the state opening of parliament). The House will later speak to the minister and the Delta Commissioner about the DP2014.
