MAURICK COLLEGE

TITLE: What will be the consequences of the sea level rise for The Netherlands?

SPEAKERS: Jorik Franken, Pien Mannaerts, Julia van Ravenswaaij, Robert Weber

ABSTRACT:
Around 3.93 million people live below sea level in The Netherlands. If the sea level will rise another one meter, 6.57 million people would live below sea level. In The Netherlands there is a complex system of dykes, dunes and flood defenses. These are called the delta works, which have been built after the great flood in 1953. The start of this construction was in 1954 and it was finished in 2010. The delta works protect these 3.93 million people from the high water. If it should fail somewhere that will have major consequences for many of these people, e.g. how do they get away in an extreme short period of time? This study will investigate what the rise in sea level means for the Dutch population and economy. Also will be investigated what kind of social problems this will entail. The existing delta works have cost around one billion euros. A solution has to be found to protect the Netherlands from the sea level rise. It is expected that this will cost many billions of euros, independent from the answer on the big question: will the new construction be built for three or for ten generations? The Dutch government will have to get that money. This might create a number of social problems, especially in combination with the international agreed energy treaty.