Red horizon on the way and large drug pit clean again: this is not to be missed

PSV lost the semi-final of the KNVB Cup, spectacular sunsets are coming due to Sahara dust and the largest drug dumping site in Europe is clean after five years. These are the five stories you must read on Wednesday.

PSV lost the semi-final of the KNVB Cup to NEC 3-2 on Tuesday evening, eliminating the chance of a treble. Coach Peter Bosz points to a pattern of weaker second halves, while captain Jerdy Schouten states that the team lost the second ball too often to NEC. Mauro Júnior was injured and cannot be deployed for the time being. Despite the elimination, Bosz remains positive about the season: with a 17-point lead over the competition, a national title would be a top achievement. Read the full story here.

Efteling does not have to fear ‘Carbuncle scenes’ where heritage is damaged by vermin. The amusement park professionally stores old dolls, attraction parts and drawings in a climate-controlled depot. According to Ronald Donkers of the heritage working group, everything has been made ‘vandal-proof’. Elements from the demolished Haunted Castle from almost fifty years ago have even been reused in the new Danse Macabre attraction. Check it out here.

There is also weather news: Brabant can prepare for spectacular sunsets due to Sahara dust that hangs over the province on Thursday and Friday. The dust causes cloudy air and possibly slightly lower temperatures, but you should not expect dirty cars because it remains dry. The weather will remain beautiful until the weekend with temperatures up to eighteen or nineteen degrees, a weak easterly wind and lots of sun. You can read more here.

After five years of intensive work, Europe’s largest drug dump site on the Brabantse Wal in Halsteren is finally clean. The ‘drug pit’, which was discovered by chance in 2021, cost an estimated one and a half million euros in clean-up costs. 5,000 cubic meters of contaminated soil was excavated, 6,000 cubic meters of groundwater was purified and 750 kilos of pure drug raw materials were extracted from the ground. The first tree was symbolically planted on Wednesday, but it will take decades before the forest is full of life again. The province will continue to monitor for at least a year whether micro-organisms can complete the last bit of work. Read his story here.

Finally, another tree in need: the battle for a 170-year-old oak in Waalwijk continues, despite the municipality refusing the felling permit. Local residents remain concerned because the tree is being treated poorly during the construction of seventy homes around the oak. A petition for the tree to be moved passed a thousand signatures. According to Ton Stokwielder of the Wereldboom foundation, cables and pipes have been pulled under the tree, meaning it is now doomed. The project developers do not want to comment on the fate of the monumental tree. You can read the whole story here.