It was one of the heaviest earthquakes ever in Drenthe, measuring 3.0 on the Richter scale in Eleveld last March. Today, MPs from the Climate and Green Growth Committee in Ekehaar saw with their own eyes how it affects the residents.
And they also discussed the proposed claims settlement that was announced last week. Because it was not well received. “With this working visit we want to hear from residents and administrators what they encounter and what we can do for them,” explains MP Henk Jumelet (CDA).
There is particular dissatisfaction about the proposed settlement of claims by State Secretary Jo-Annes de Bat (CDA). As it stands now, we are working with zones. People with damage who live closer to the epicenter receive more money than those further away. Instead of being easy and quick, the handling is becoming complicated and slow, according to the mayors involved.
Jaap Eefting from Assen can talk about that. After the earthquake he discovered 18 cracks in his farmhouse. “As it now seems, I am being left out and that is not right. That is why I hope that the MPs can do something for us and stand for us. That we now come first.”
After an extensive catch-up session, the members of the House committee also took a look at a house with damage.
“I hope that today’s discussion can still adjust the intended claims handling,” says Mayor Anno Wietze Hiemstra (CDA) of the municipality of Aa en Hunze. “It was clear that the MPs had read it carefully. But if, like today, you have the time to delve deeper into the problems, you see that the MPs understand that what has now been proposed is really not good.”
Ines Kostic (Party for the Animals) also hopes that The Hague will wake up. “They think that everything will be fine here in the region. But it is a mess,” she says firmly. “Everything has to be skimped on; the victims here get a few tens to repair a crack.”
The Dutch Petroleum Company (NAM) extracted gas from the field near Eleveld for many years. A major thorn in the side of drivers and victims is that NAM has a major say in the negotiations on the compensation settlement.
“Now it is the NAM that decides. But the residents here are not to blame for the earthquakes, that is the NAM,” Kostic explains. “They have earned a lot of money from gas extraction for years. Then it cannot be the case that citizens now have to pay for their own damages.”
Mayor Hiemstra wholeheartedly agrees with this. “The government issued the permit for gas extraction and the NAM has benefited from it. Now we are dependent on the discussion between the two parties about the settlement of damages. In short, the residents have become the playing ball between the NAM and the government.”