Adjusting the water level will not inhibit or stop the subsidence at New Amsterdam in the short term. That is the main conclusion of the latest investigation into the soil subsidence around the village. In that respect, Water Board Vechtstroom cannot help to prevent subsidence.
“We have asked ourselves: what can we do here?”, Says spokesperson Martin Hilferink of Water Board Vechtstroom. “With our surface water system, we may be able to influence the groundwater in such a way that the subsidence does not continue. But that influence is very limited. So small actually that there is no question at all.”
Problems about subsidence around New Amsterdam have been playing since 2019. They came to light through dozens of damage reports from homeowners from the village and Erica. Residents reported subsidence of their houses that led to cracks in the walls.
The municipality of Emmen, the province of Drenthe and the Vechtstroom Water Board then moved together to investigate the causes and come to solutions. The first studies show that the damage is caused by subsidence, renovations and defective building constructions.
In the area, groundwater is extracted on a large scale, which can lead to the soiling of the soil. Heavy freight traffic, and variation in soil structure are also mentioned as causes. All in all, there was no finger on an exact cause. There is probably a coherence, the conclusion was.
The research into the water system is the last in a long series. “There is no more to investigate,” says Hilferink. The point is that homes in New Amsterdam are built on the peat. “You see that top layer disappear due to climate change and more drought. But that peat material also occurs in deeper layers. If they protrude above the groundwater, the soil can sound and the peat layer can disappear.”
The starting point for the investigation was to increase the groundwater level, so that the layers remain robust. “But the only thing that can really send me is the surface water system. For example, by raising the water level. But that has practically no influence on the groundwater.”
Various measures have already been created for residents with damage. The three governments opened a service counter, where residents can go with their questions about damage. Since last year, a loan on favorable conditions has been offered for repair work.
Emmen, the province and fighting streams do not leave it at all. They want to continue all current measures in an area -wide approach. What that will look like exactly is not yet known. New Amsterdam served as a pilot area, where the experience gained can be useful in other parts of the country. Because the problems play in several parts of the Netherlands, says Hilferink.
It is estimated that between 2024 and 2035, 375,000 to 425,000 buildings will be confronted with foundation damage between 2024 and 2035. The repair costs can amount to 12 billion euros.