“What once stood for death and destruction is now often a delivery room of life,” says Marc van Schie, volunteer coordinator at IVN Zuid-Kennemerland. “Those bomb craters were full of water and have grown into mushrooms. But to keep it that way, regular maintenance must be carried out.”
‘Do not need a gym subscription’
Once in a while, a group of around fifteen volunteers pulls into the dunes at IJmuiden to saw, rakes and weeding. Under the guidance of Van Schie, hard work is being done to keep pools open. “What you see here was at first completely closed,” he points out. “Now we have opened it again. That is not only good for toads and frogs, but also for dragonflies, rabbits and plants that benefit from more light and space. This is how we strengthen biodiversity in a broad sense.”
The work is tough, it seems when we see Volunteer Bauk climbing the slope on the slope with a large bunch of pruning waste. Laughing she says: “No, it is not too bad. I want to invite everyone to come along. It serves a good cause, there are more critters, and I don’t need a gym subscription and it is always fun, what more do you want?”
Cooperation and growing initiative
The project in the dunes behind the Ampèreweg started on a small scale, says Van Schie. “John de Jonge from the Reptielenwerkgroep Zuid-Kennemerland saw that the toad puddles slowly grew. He then started pruning with friends and acquaintances. Because I knew him, I said: we can help. I can always get up fifteen people with my nature work group. We have been busy for two years now. And it is going like a spear.”
The collaboration yields visible results. Poelen and surrounding slopes are free of high vegetation and accessible, which not only benefits the amphibians, but other animals and plants also get the space again, Van Schie explains.
Rabbits and insects an opportunity
The toads only use the pools to drop their eggs in the spring. “In summer and autumn they pull the dunes back in and in the winter they crawl underground or between bushes,” says Van Schie “That is why it is important that there are enough open spaces. If everything grows with reed or dune riet, they can move more difficult and the variation in species decreases.”
Nitrogen also plays a role. Due to the high emissions, plants in the Netherlands grow faster and dunes and pools are getting overgrowded and closer. That is why some places are consciously kept open, so that rabbits and insects also get a chance.
Source of new life
Sometimes tangible memories of the war still come up, such as pieces of concrete or an old enamel sign. “That emphasizes the contrast,” says Van Schie. “What was once meant to destroy is now a source of life.”