Due to the ongoing drought, the Netherlands officially has a water shortage. The cabinet announced this on Wednesday. The water will now be distributed according to legal agreements. This means that dikes, peatlands and very vulnerable nature areas must be supplied with water for as long as possible.
According to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, there had been an “imminent water shortage” since mid-July. Now the cabinet speaks of a “de facto water shortage”.
This activates the so-called displacement sequence. With this measure laid down in the law, certain important areas are given priority in receiving fresh water. That measure was already in force in the Vallei en Veluwe Water Board, and now in the whole of the Netherlands.
The first priority in this plan is to keep the dikes safe and to prevent irreversible damage to nature and peatlands. After that, the fresh water will be used to maintain the drinking water and energy supply. Other stakeholders – such as industry, agriculture and shipping – join later in line.
Drinking water availability not at risk
Minister Mark Harbers (Infrastructure and Water Management) also wrote to the House of Representatives on Wednesday that the Water Shortage Management Team (MTW) will be convened for the first time since 2018. This team consists of Rijkswaterstaat, water boards, drinking water companies, provinces and three ministries and is allowed to decide on measures that affect several regions or are even national.
According to the cabinet, the drinking water supply is not endangered. Minister Harbers does ask all Dutch people to “think carefully whether they should wash their car or fill their inflatable swimming pool completely.”
Due to the ongoing drought, various measures were already in place. For example, in parts of the country there is a ban on spraying for agriculture. Ships are also not allowed to overtake each other on parts of the Gelderse IJssel. The fairway has become narrow here because of the low water level. Moreover, the water level of the IJsselmeer is kept as high as possible because a lot of drinking water comes from here.