Nieuwpoort welcomes special transport
Today a very special transport departs from Kallo, in the port of Antwerp, towards the harbor channel of Nieuwpoort: a pontoon with a huge concrete threshold on top. This is an important part of the storm surge barrier that the Agency for Maritime Services and Coast is currently building there. Minister of Mobility and Public Works Lydia Peeters came to see how the enormous threshold is being finalized. The concrete threshold, made in Kallo, will be transported by sea as a monolith and will be installed early next week.
The storm surge barrier is being built on the Yzer to protect Nieuwpoort and the hinterland against rising sea levels. Accelerated sea level rise to 80 cm is expected by the end of this century. Measurements since 1925 prove that the sea has actually risen several tens of cm. The project will be completed in 2025 and will cost 58 million euros.
Nieuwpoort fishing fleet temporarily moves to Ostend
From the arrival of the threshold in Nieuwpoort until the end of April, no passage of professional or pleasure boats will be possible at this location in the harbor channel. The exact timing of this blockage will be announced on Tuesday 19 April.
As a result, the Nieuwpoort fishing fleet will soon move temporarily to Ostend. The freshly caught fish and shrimp is taken from there early in the morning to the urban fish market in Nieuwpoort to find its normal way to the fishmonger and his customers.