By Stas Margaronis
The Netherlands has taken the lead in building dikes and sea gates to protect the country from the rise in sea level.
Beginning after catastrophic floods in 1953, the Netherlands embarked on a series of projects in the southwest part of the country called the Delta Works. The Dutch government’s Rijkswaterstaat built the system “to protect the country against flooding from the North Sea. A large part of the Netherlands is below sea level and many large European rivers flow through the country to the sea. The large volume of water and the low-lying situation of the country exposes the Netherlands to the threat of flooding. Flood protection is therefore vital for the safety of millions of people in the Netherlands. Rijkswaterstaat started building the Delta Works in the year following the Great Flood of 1953. The massive project, with 13 storm surge barriers, was completed in 1997. Primary flood barriers, including storm surge barriers, now protect us from the sea, rivers and large lakes. Regional flood barriers, such as dams and dykes, defend against flooding from inland waterways.”
One example is the Maeslantkering, a storm surge barrier that protects the city of Rotterdam from floods. Completed in 1997, the Maeslantkering consists of two 6,800 ton gates that close under the autonomous command of a set of computers that monitor the sea levels on an hourly basis. These computers are not connected to the internet, making them invulnerable to cyber-attacks. The construction cost was €450 million ($509 million USD today).The Maeslantkering protects Rotterdam’s 994,000 inhabitants.
The Maeslantkering sea gates protect the city of Rotterdam
On Wednesday, January 3, 2018, a severe storm caused water levels to rise all along the coast. For the first time ever, Rijkswaterstaat closed all the country’s storm surge barriers on the same day.
Peter Persoon, technical information officer at the Maeslantkering, said: “the Dutch government is concerned that sea level rise caused by global warming will force the Netherlands to accelerate investments in new bigger sea barriers and taller dikes: We had planned for a 2 millimeter increase in sea level per year but if the rise accelerates to 20 millimeters per year then we have to act now to anticipate sea level increases we had expected in 2100 occurring sooner – possibly by 2060. For example, … the Maeslant barrier was planned to defend against sea level rises projected into 2100. Now, it is possible that we will have to replace these gates sooner. This is going to require a bigger budget for sea defense and water management.”
Persoon noted there is growing cooperation for sea level defense from countries around the world. Storm Surge Barrier (SSB) professionals from the UK, Italy, USA, Belgium, Holland and Russia are part of the I-STORM network, which brings together professionals that build, manage, operate and maintain storm surge barriers.