pthomas156

Hi All,
My husband and I are spending 2 weeks driving around the Netherlands in the last half of September. Among the usually sights, we're interested in seeing places that show what the Dutch have done to reclaim the sea and to protect themselves from sea rise (living in both Rhode Island and Miami Beach, we're facing the future). I have read a bit about Delta Works and the Zieder Zee Museum, but I'm wondering what advice forum participants might have. I'm not sure why, but the info is a bit hard to follow. Has anybody done any of this?

hetismij2

As well as the Delta works you should drive over the Afslutdijk, which encloses the old Zuiderzee, now the Ijsselmeer. Then drive back down the coast seeing the old fishing villages, maybe vist the Woudagemaal https://www.woudagemaal.nl/ and visit Urk, a former island, and still a major fishing port, and maybe Schokland, before returning to Amsterdam through the Flevopolders, where you could visit Museum het Nieuweland http://www.nieuwlanderfgoed.nl/english in Lelystad.

Kinderdijk windmills were used for water pumping.
Cruquius in Haarlem is worth a visit: http://www.haarlemmermeermuseum.nl/cruquius-museum

hetismij2

Oh and of course the dunes all along the north sea coast - a major part of the protection system.

PalenQ

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lelystad

Lelystad is an interesting new planned city lying 3 metres below sea level - hetismij2 mentions the museum but to see how towns of the future may have to cope Lelystad is a good start.

hetismij2

Lelystad is not the lowest city in the Netherlands.
Near Nieuwerkerk aan den Ijssel is the lowest point - -6.76m.

You will see along the motorways through the Flevo- and Noordoostpolders sculptures, often of houses with ships sailing on the smoke from the chimney, to indicate sea level.

Also worth seeing in Lelystad (which otherwise is a rather dismal place imho) is the Anthony Gormley sculpture, officially called Exposure but generally known as the Poepende Man. http://www.flevolanderfgoed.nl/home/.../exposure.html you can walk up to and through it.

HappyTrvlr

As Heti mentioned, Kinderdijk is in this category. Nineteen windmills stand where they pumped water out of the land into the canals. From Rotterdam you take a waterbus to Kinderdijk. Very interesting and a beautiful sight to see.

ribeirasacra

Second some of the advice above:
I had the opportunity to go to this pumping station.
Tour with an English speaking guide. Wife says that when they fire up the boilers it seems all of the Netherlands is there.
https://www.woudagemaal.nl/
Also I have visited Maeslantkering
http://www.keringhuis.nl/
Nothing fantastic a small visitors centre. But a nice pot to watch the port traffic go by. you will miss the closing on the 9 September.
If you are in this area then Europoort/Maasvlakte2 will be of greater interest. On going works to reclaim land to increase the size of the port.https://www.maasvlakte2.com/en/home/
And some locations of associated works.
http://www.keringhuis.nl/index.php?id=14
Then there is a museum about the horrific floods in 1953
http://www.watersnoodmuseum.nl

ribeirasacra

Have you seen anything about Neeltje Jans?
It goes into "everything" about the Delta works.
https://www.neeltjejans.nl/en/

lavandula

A second vote for the Afsluitdijk. If you stop halfway there is a parking bay so you can observe from the roadside and a small (quite good) cafe with - well, I wouldn't call it a museum, but there are photos of the construction. All very interesting.

Lavandula

IMDonehere

We went out of our way to visit the Delta works. Pretty dull stuff.

ribeirasacra

IMdone... I actually think they are dam good!

massimop

Hope you don't mind my asking but where do you live in Rhode Island?

ribeirasacra

Off topic again, massimop?

menachem

If you are in the Rotterdam area, you might trace the sea defences up river, from the Maeslantkering, through Rotterdam to the barrier at the Krimpen a/d IJssel.
In Rotterdam itself a number of tactics are being deployed to manage water in this shallow bowl: the water catchment "play" area at Bentinck plein, the huge water catchment beneath a parking garage near Boymans van Beuningen museum, and the mandated "green" roofs that add more absorbent surface to the city: you can have lunch on one: the Dakakker on Schiekade.

All this is evidence of a new approach to water management, but it's so understated that you'll have to look for it.

And go further afield, to Nijmegen, and you'll see the new philosophy at work. In the mid 1990s after a catastrophic river flood, we realised that the "old" paradigm, based on massive defences would not be sustainable. And so, water management has taken on an entirely different character. Now it is "making room for the river" that's paramount. A spectacular and quite beautiful example can be observed across the Waal river from Nijmegen.

A must visit imo also is the Watersnood Museum, where you'll get a good overview of what the Dutch tradition of water management is about. For instance, our oldest democratic institutions are the Water Authorities that originate in the middle ages and that exist till today. These can levy taxes independently and the Authority Board is democratically elected

http://www.watersnoodmuseum.nl/UK/

And a dark horse:

The former Waterloop Laboratory in Marknesse: In a forest engineers built huge scalemodels of the delta works and of other designs to test their layout and construction. The place was derelict for a while, and is now being restored. Super interesting place, and if you're near Urk, it's a short drive.

https://www.natuurmonumenten.nl/bezo...m-waterloopbos

hetismij2

I didn't know about Marknesse! We visited it once back when it was a lab and had an open day. DH worked at NLR next door for 15 months.
I shall have to pay it a visit sometime, it looks really interesting.

menachem

They're now restoring the big wave funnel that was used to test the barrier doors on the Oosterschelde barrier.

PalenQ

http://tedx.amsterdam/2015/09/beauti...all-fell-down/

Amsterdam is perhaps the oldest most prodigious product of beating the sea level - much of old town being built on wooden piles - that are in some cases subsiding.

massimop

My question was addressed to the OP, not you ribierasacra. It is you who are trying to derail the thread with a petty vendetta.

menachem

Uhm PalenQ, no, it isn't. We have flood mounts up north that are far, far older.

But it's interesting to note that there is a perennial conflict between farmers (agricultural entrepreneurs) and city dwellers, like in Amsterdam, about the level of the groundwater table. This is controlled by the Water Authorities in which farmers have a predominant position. But their acceptable level, one that's good for agriculture, is so low, that the tops of the piles will dry out and rot, so endangering many parts of a city like Amsterdam. Not only there: almost all "old" foundations are wooden piles. Or hides.

PalenQ

Or hides.>

Yes cow hides - I understand the huge Utrecht Cathedral is built on a foundation of cow hides - no shortage of them in NL!

Yours and hetismij2's info only a local could tell about is great - I'm eating up everyword -especially surprising water table is too low in A'dam but makes sense!