INTERIM REVISION OF THE NATIONAL WATER PLAN for embedding national policy arising from the proposals for Delta Decisions and preferential strategies as included in the Delta Programme 2015 1 2 Key to Map Spatial planning/www.ruimtelijkeplannen.nl waterveiligheid flood risk management zoetwater freshwater waterkwaliteit water quality hoofdwatersysteem main water system Rijn-Maasdelta Rhine-Meuse Delta ZW Delta Southwest Delta rivieren rivers IJsselmeergebied IJssel Lake area Nederlands deel van de Dutch part of the North Sea Noordzee coast kust sandy system zandig systeem zone for sand extraction zandwinzone Wadden region Waddengebied spatial adaptation ruimtelijke adaptatie Introduction—4 1 Flood risk management—9 2 Freshwater—22 3 Spatial adaptation—28 4 IJsselmeer region—32 Policy choices—32 Substantiation Winter water level—32 Implementation—33 Spatial aspects—36 5 Rhine-Meuse delta—37 A. RHINE ESTUARY-DRECHTSTEDEN—38 B. RIVERS—43 C. SOUTHWEST DELTA—48 6 Sandy system—52 A. COAST—55 B. WADDEN REGION—57 7 Financing—59 3 Introduction For a low-lying delta such as the Netherlands, it is essential to continue working on flood risk management and sustainable freshwater supplies. We have more people and greater economic value to protect than we did sixty years ago. The climate is also changing, with sea levels rising and the ground subsiding. Rainfall is more frequent and heavier and there is a greater likelihood of very dry periods and salinisation. The Cabinet believes it is important to keep the Netherlands safe, liveable and economically attractive. To help ensure this, the central government, provinces, water boards, municipalities and social organisations have spent the last few years working on the flood risk management and freshwater supply challenges in the Delta Programme. The result: a proposal for Delta Decisions and area-based strategies in the Delta Programme 20151. The reason underlying the Delta Programme is the recommendation from the Delta Committee headed by Prof. C. Veerman (2008). The Cabinet finds that, using major interventions to climate-proof the Netherlands for the future, the ‘Veerman recommendation’ has been cut back to pragmatic solutions. The current water system in the Netherlands by and large still suffices for the time being (until 2050). However, we do stand to gain from making the current system more flexible and robust, which will make it more resistant to extremes. In addition, the Cabinet also opts for a fundamentally different flood risk management policy, doing away with the current system of standards, which dates back to the 1960s. Moreover, the Cabinet will change its freshwater policy, as there will be a growing shortage of freshwater supplies in the future and it is advisable for the government to indicate how much freshwater is available so that users can revise their investments accordingly. The Cabinet is also seeking to organise the Netherlands in a more water-robust and climate-proof fashion; this will contribute to a healthy living environment and is key to an attractive investment climate. Water and other spatial interests have a significant impact on each other. First of all, there may be smart combinations in which spatial organisation can play an important role in solving the water challenges. Secondly, the water challenges for flood risk management and freshwater supplies must consider spatial interests from early on, both when establishing and when implementing the challenges. This applies in any event to urban areas and developed river dykes, such as in Rhine Estuary- Drechtsteden. There are also areas where there are opportunities to link in with nature ambitions, such as along the sandy coast and in the IJsselmeer region. There are opportunities in the area around the major rivers for a comprehensive approach to promising locations for river widening. The Cabinet will continue its adaptive approach to the Delta Programme. By knowing what is needed in the long run and considering the various delta scenarios, we can do what is necessary in the short term while leaving the options for the longer term open. The Cabinet favours flexible solutions that can be adapted to new insights in the longer term, preferring solutions that accommodate natural processes and building with nature wherever possible. The Cabinet also encourages innovation aimed at, for example, maintaining and capitalising on our international standing as water experts. 1 House of Representatives, session year 2014-2015 4 This interim revision embeds national policy and the required actions on a national level that follow from the proposal for Delta Decisions and preferential strategies in the Delta Programme 2015 into the National Water Plan (NWP). As such, the plan provides the basis for elaborating and implementing this national policy. An environmental impact statement (plan-EIS) has been drafted for this revision, which includes an appropriate assessment. This statement indicates that the draft plan comprises a large number of process-related policy choices, which must be specified in more detail to gain insight into the environmental effects. The statement also finds that the environmental impact of the more framework-setting policy choices is mostly moderate and generally positive. The appropriate assessment shows that the policy choices can be implemented within the preconditions of the Nature Conservation Act. The ambition is to fully integrate the revision of the NWP into the second NWP (December 2015). The Draft Plan for the Interim Revision and the plan-EIS were available for inspection from 17 September 2014 to 28 October 2014. 44 points of view were submitted. The points of view submitted were addressed in a Report of Answers, stating whether the points of view were grounds for any amendments to the plan. The plan was updated and edited in a number of respects; these amendments have also been included in the Report of Answers. The Committee for the Environmental Impact Statement has issued advice on the plan- EIS. The Committee’s advice states that the EIS contains essential information to be able to take a decision on the interim revision, with the environmental interests being fully taken into account. The Committee recommends that the Synthesis Document on the Safety sub-programme should be regarded as a part of the EIS. As the EIS contains all essential information, this recommendation is not adopted. The Synthesis Report on the Safety subprogramme is regarded as a key building block for substantiating the choices in the Delta Programme with regard to the new standards and it is available as an appendix to the Delta Programme 2015. The other points of the Committee’s advice have been taken into account or will be considered in the follow-up process. The interim revision was drawn up by the Minister for Infrastructure and the Environment and the State Secretary for Economic Affairs. Details regarding flood risk management policy have been coordinated with the Ministry of Security and Justice. The interim revision dovetails with other national policy documents, such as the Framework Vision on Infrastructure and Space2, the Vision on Cultural Heritage and Space3 and the Climate Agenda4. The NWP is binding upon the central government; the Cabinet asks other government authorities to convert elements of the Delta Programme 2015 that are relevant for them into their own policy plans, as was agreed in the Administrative Agreement on the Delta Programme. National Water Plan 2009-20155 The Water Act lays down that the central government will revise the National Water Plan (NWP) once every six years. The first water plan, the NWP 2009-2015 contains the broad outlines for national water policy and the related aspects of spatial policy. Based on the Spatial Planning Act (abbreviated as Wro in Dutch), the NWP is also a ‘framework vision’ where spatial aspects are concerned. As such, the instruments 2 House of Representatives, session year 2011-2012, 32 660, no. 51 3 House of Representatives, session year 2010-2011, 32 156, no. 29 4 House of Representatives, session year 2013-2014, 32 813, no. 70 5 House of Representatives, session year 2009-2010, 31 710, no. 12 5 available under the Spatial Planning Act can also be used for policy implementation. This plan outlines the spatial aspects in separate sub-sections in each section. Progress of the policy objectives and actions from NWP 2009-2015 is reported to the House of Representatives every year in ‘Water Mapped Out’. In the NWP 2009-2015, which was published on 22 December 2009, the Cabinet announced that it would introduce new standards based on flood probability and aim for ‘multi-layer safety’. The Cabinet also announced a decree on freshwater supplies and that it intends to make water policy more spatial and spatial policy ‘wetter’. The adaptive approach already announced in the NWP has been elaborated and applied in more detail in the Delta Programme. The same applies to encouraging designers’ efforts in looking for comprehensive solutions for the water challenges. 6 Map 1: Flood risk management and freshwater challenges 7 Key to map 1 Opgaven Challenges Waterveiligheid Flood risk management waterkering op orde brengen, grote repair flood defence system, major tasking opgave repair flood defence system waterkering op orde brengen flood defence system management onderhoud waterkering preserve sandy coastal system in stand houden zandig kustsysteem storm surge barrier maintenance tasking onderhoudsopgave stormvloedkering maintain water discharge