Homeowners and tenants in the Noorderzijlvest water board pay the highest water board tax of the four water boards in Drenthe. Taxes are lowest in Hunze and Aa’s, according to research by the Coelo bureau of the University of Groningen.
The study looked at the price increases between 2019 and 2023. During this period, water board charges in Noorderzijlvest increased by 25 percent. In Hunze and Aa’s this increase was limited to between 3 and 6 percent.
Tenants pay the least charges in the Vechtstream water board, at 277 euros. In Hunze and Aa’s the costs are 304 euros, within the Drents Overijsselse Delta a tenant pays 316 euros and Noorderzijlvest is the most expensive at 337 euros. Hunze en Aa’s is the ‘cheapest’ for homeowners, the costs here are 390 euros. Noorderzijlvest is also the most expensive for owner-occupied houses at 566 euros.
Noorderzijlvest also has the highest debt of the four Drenthe water boards. This now amounts to 250 million euros and is expected to rise to 300 million within two years. Bernd de Nijs, chairman of the party Affordable Water, finds it shocking to see that the small Noorderzijlvest water board is doing nothing more to reduce costs.
“There are two offices thirty kilometers apart, with two directors, two boards, two personnel departments, ICT and communication. And the activities of Hunze en Aa’s and Noorderzijlvest are comparable.” According to De Nijs, organizational collaboration saves costs and will lead to lower rates on average. “The responsible provinces must now really take action.”