Videos and information on Dutch high water

City of Nijmegen:

City of Deventer:

Provinces Limburg and Gelderland:

Province of Limburg:

Rules for high water prevention measures per river can be accessed here.

News - January

Nu.nl reports:

• 2010 year with most natural disasters in the past 2 decades

The UN ordered a research from the CRED in Belgium, and they have found 297.000 deaths due to natural disasters in 2010. The Haitian earthquake was responsible for 222.500 deaths, followed by the heatwave in Russia with 55.000 deaths.

Looking at the most costly disasters, the total of costs is estimated at 80 billion euro. The earthquake causing a tsunami in Chili ranks at the top, followed by floods and landslides in China and Pakistan.

207 million people were affected by natural disasters; 89 percent of the affected areas was in Asia.

Source >>>

The Dutch government reports:

• Expansion of the province Zuid-Holland into the ocean

The project Zandmotor (Sand motor), for which I approved one of the many necessary permits, has started today. 21.5 million cubic meter of sand are applied at one point of the coast. Natural effects of wind, waves and sea currents will spread out this sand along the coast line. This project is thought to naturally enhance water safety and enlarge the recreational area of the coast, while costing less as there is no longer the need to locally add sand every 5 years. 100 hectares of new land are expected to come into existence.

Movie >>>

Research institute Deltares reports:

• New version of OpenMI released

Integrating environmental models to test sustainability and impacts of policies is now even easier with the new version of OpenMI. Details >>>

Magazine H2O reports:

• Enclosure Dam not up to standards

Provinces Friesland and Noord-Holland have informed the minister of Infrastructure and the Environment that the Enclosure Dam in the North of the Netherlands once again fails to meet the legal safety standards. Corresponding sluices and drain resources also didn't comply with the standards. It is now up to the government to take adequate measures. More>>>

• Water board de Dommel starts e-panel with civilians

The water board de Dommel, in the South of the Netherlands, has initiated an online civilian panel in order to have the activities of the water board connect better with desires of civilians. People joining the survey receive a free 'shower coach', which aids in reducing water usage. More>>>

• Military aircraft F-16 aids in dike movement inspections

The water board Peel and Maasvallei in the South-East of the Netherlands has had the aid of an F-16 to determine possible dike movements. The aircraft used the Recce-Lite system, and the results were good: all dikes in the area are stable. More>>>

Japan's aging representative for the rest of the world?

News Watch 9 has a report about the 'Japan Syndrome', the rapid aging of society, commented on by Henry Tricks, head of the Tokyo office of The Economist. Find the movie here (Japanese) and the article from The Economist here (English).