Emergency pumping stations pump away rainwater, but where to?

It is quiet on a Friday afternoon in the Jac. P. Thijsseplein in Hilversum. Fortunately, there is no flooding here. The wadis which were installed on the square in May this year have done their job well so far. Two passing local residents say they are not bothered by the rain and that the flooding is limited. “Children enjoy playing here and the water drains well,” said a local resident.

Municipalities try to come up with as many solutions as possible to drain water in urban areas, via wadis or green areas. The Jac. P. Thijsseplein is part of the Groene Loper project in Hilversum. The project is mainly intended to green the 1221 district, but climate adaptation is also taken into account with each project. Climate adaptation is an expensive word, which is actually a term for the Netherlands to prepare itself as best as possible for weather changes, such as floods and drought.

Spokesman Jorrit Voet of the Hollands Noorderkwartier Water Board says things are different in the province. “Because it has rained a lot now, the ground is very saturated and everything is falling into ditches. We use an emergency pump to pump out that water and then take it to the canals, such as the Noordhollands Kanaal or the Zaankanaal. These canals are drained with large pumping stations. pumped empty and pumped to the Wadden Sea, the IJsselmeer, the Markermeer or the North Sea Canal.”

Jorrit Voet says that 300 millimeters of rainfall has fallen in one month and that it is exceptionally high. “The pumping stations now pump out three Olympic swimming pools full every minute.” In addition to the pumping stations, the province also has water storage facilities. These can temporarily collect water and are located throughout the province.

Stones in the city

“In cities you often see that the water has nowhere to go, through petrified gardens, but those tiles ensure that it quickly washes off into ditches or puddles,” says Jorrit. “When it rains very hard, the water flows to the nearest water, causing the water level to rise faster. Jorrit therefore advises people in cities to remove their tiles from their gardens, allowing the water to enter the ground. “That is in the summer also an advantage, because you have more greenery and that is also good against the heat.”

According to the spokesperson, it is important for them to keep an eye on the weather forecast so that they can take the correct precautions. “If the pumping stations cannot cope, we intervene.”

Wet feet

“We have now had a lot of precipitation for twelve days. The cluster showers in particular, many showers in a row, caused flooded streets, gardens and flooded cellars. The chance of wet feet is much greater than before.

“In the future we have to accept that there will be more frequent situations where we can get our feet wet,” says Jorrit. The spokesperson says they are doing everything they can to prevent this, but it remains difficult for them to guarantee this.