The provinces of Noord-Brabant and Zeeland are allocating 11.5 million euros with other organizations to better use thirty million cubic meters of rain and seepage water from the Brabantse Wal nature reserve. This now flows unused into the Westerschelde.
The agreements on this with the Scheldestromen Water Boards and Brabantse Delta, nature manager Brabants Landschap and the Delta Fund were confirmed on Tuesday. The measures fit in with the aim of becoming the most climate -proof delta in 2050.
The money goes to two projects. The first project leads rain and groundwater via existing ditches to the Markiezaatsmeer near Bergen op Zoom. That happens in winter and spring, if there is an abundance of water. For the rest of the year, nature and agriculture in the area need the water. The second project focuses on improving water quality in the ditches.
Water level improves
By letting clean freshwater from the high -lying Brabantse Wal flow to the lower Markiezaatsmeer, the water level of the lake improves. With the recently put into use, the water level can be increased if necessary. There are also ‘breeding islands’, reports the Brabantse Delta Water Board. The higher water in the area protects the many species of birds that breed and hibernate against attacks of other animals.
The Brabant deputy Saskia Boelema points to the importance of the plans. “Freshwater is a precious good that we don’t just have to be lost. At the foot of the Brabantse Wal, this project changes.”
From saltwater to freshwater
The Markiezaatsmeer falls under both Brabant and Zeeland. The large lake belonged to the construction of the Oesterdam in 1983 at the Oosterschelde. Due to the arrival of the dam, it slowly turns from a saltwater area into a freshwater lake.