Delta Commissioner opens Water Square in Rotterdam
Together with municipal executive councillor Alexandra van Huffelen and water board chair Chris van der Velden, Delta Commissioner Wim Kuijken opened the water square at Benthemplein in Rotterdam today. This very first European water square demonstrates how Rotterdam is dealing with rainwater in a sustainable manner and keeping feet dry in the surrounding area. At the same time, the square is an attractive city square that offers space for sports and greenery.
Wim Kuijken about the water square: "Both the municipality of Rotterdam and the Schieland & de Krimpenerwaard District Water Authority are active partners in the Delta Programme. Concrete and tangible innovations like this water square are important for the Delta Programme because they allow us to see spatial adaptation in practice and thus make our cities climate-proof.”
Increasing weather extremes mean that it rains more often and more heavily. Like other municipalities, Rotterdam has relatively little space in its densely populated urban area for collecting and storing water above ground. The water square is an innovation that Rotterdam came up with that is aimed at taking the pressure off the sewage system in times of heavy rainfall and, at the same time, making the city more attractive. When it rains heavily, the water is collected in special reservoirs on the square. The sunken sports section will only be flooded in extreme conditions and then functions as an additional buffer. As soon as it is dry, the water is discharged, these areas become dry. and once again the square offers plenty of space to engage in sports and relax.