The primary flood defence systems of our country provide protection against flooding from the North Sea, the major rivers, the IJsselmeer, Markermeer,Volkerak-Zoommeer, and Grevelingenmeer lakes, the tidal section of the Hollandsche IJssel river, and the Veluwerandmeren lakes. With effect from 1 January 2017, once every twelve years the primary flood defence systems will be subjected to a statutory assessment, in order to verify whether the dykes and dams meet the statutory standards. The report on the most recent (third) assessment was drawn up in 2011 and followed by the extended third round of assessments. The national Flood Protection Programme sets out the measures that are required to ensure that the primary flood defence systems meet the statutory safety standards, now and in the future. The Flood Protection Programme is drawn up by an alliance of the district water boards and the central government. The dyke improvements are carried out by the managers of the dyke sections concerned.

Under certain conditions, the district water boards qualify for a government grant for dyke improvement projects. This is funded under a specific “dykes funding arrangement”, which is a component of the Delta Fund. The projects are funded on a fifty-fifty basis, i.e., equal contributions from the central government and the district water boards. The collective district water boards contribute 40% to the dykes funding arrangement (via a cost allocation key). The remaining 10% concerns a project-related contribution from the district water board responsible for the dyke improvement. 

The Flood Protection Programme is an ongoing programme; the measures are scheduled for a period of six years. The programme is aimed at having all flood defence systems meet the new standards by 2050. This will ensure a minimum protection level of 10-5 per annum for every resident of the Netherlands living behind a primary dyke or dam by no later than 2050. The Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment sets down the programme annually under the Delta Plan on Flood Risk Management. To this end, the alliance draws up a new programme proposal every year, that builds on the preceding year’s schedule. The schedule is based on the principle that the most urgent dyke improvements will be carried out first. The urgency is determined on the basis of the new standards that have come into effect in January 2017. The grants from the dyke funding arrangements are awarded on the basis of an effective, restrained implementation of the dyke improvement projects.

The (extended) third round of assessments has generated the current picture of the flood risk management tasking; the projects have been prioritised on the basis of data from the National Flood Risk Analysis for the Netherlands study part 2. In the years ahead, the flood protection tasking will be fine-tuned increasingly further, as more assessment results based on the new standards become available. The nationwide assessment of all primary flood defence systems and engineering structures will be completed in 2023. This will enable the Delta Plan on Flood Risk Management to present an updated picture of the flood risk management tasking in the Netherlands, based on the new standards. The years ahead constitute a transitional period for the Flood Protection Programme: the schedule features dyke improvements ensuing from the (extended) third round of assessments under the old standards (most of which are in progress), while new dyke improvements will gradually be added on the basis of the first round of assessments under the new standards. The dyke improvements based on an assessment under the old standards will be dimensioned in accordance with the new standards.

Figures 8 and 9 present a forecast of the dyke improvements and engineering structures to be improved. Both figures show that the number of completed improvements is rising sharply after the start-up years. The Flood Protection Programme is getting off the ground.

These indicators are still under development. The associated goals are challenging, ambitious, and directive for the course of the programme in the years ahead. The Flood Protection Programme is still in the start-up phase and many dyke improvement projects are still in the exploration phase. In a few years’ time, a larger number of dyke improvements will enter the plan phase and the realisation phase. This will generate sufficient qualitative information to properly monitor the price per kilometre and the lead times. Until such time, the alliance is focusing its efforts on knowledge development.

Table 2 contains an overview of the General Explorations that have been launched and the corresponding schedule. The Central Holland General Exploration was completed in 2016. The resulting improvement tasking has been accommodated in the regular programme. The Piping General Exploration will be completed in 2018. This General Exploration will generate innovative measures to combat the piping failure mechanism. The schedule for 2018-2023 comprises the new General Exploration regarding dyke improvement using local soil. The aim is to develop knowledge and innovative solutions for improving dykes using soil from the immediate vicinity. This knowledge will also foster the sustainability of the programme.

Innovations are also realised in individual projects. In 2016, nine projects involving an innovative element were completed. The General Explorations and the innovative project elements contribute to the aim of reducing the average cost per kilometre of dyke improvement.