Story overview

How do our rivers remain navigable, how do they help us get fresh water in the future, and how do we prevent flooding? Deltares is deploying its expertise to answer these questions in the Room for the River 2.0 programme. In this programme we are working together with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Waterstaat, Rijkswaterstaat, regional governments and the business community on a future-proof river area.

Animal burrowing is becoming an increasing problem for the safety of flood defences. Deltares conducted various studies on this issue so that water authorities can take measures to control the flood risks caused by burrowing animals such as beavers.

How can we combat climate change and restore natural ecosystems at the same time? This is the question that Stefano Gamberoni struggles with every day. Stefano is a junior advisor and researcher in the field of Nature-based Solutions and the carbon cycle in coastal areas. What inspires him to work at Deltares? We asked Stefano: "What drives you?"

Our oceans are full of life and this huge biodiversity is important for a healthy ecosystem. There are however several factors that can disrupt this balance, such as turbid ocean water for example. But how do we measure this turbidity and what is its impact? Deltares investigates this together with IMT Atlantique in the European Digital Twin Ocean (EDITO) project. To better understand the so-called 'turbidity field', the latest digital technologies are combined with existing numerical models and satellite data with the Wadden Sea as a pilot.

With increasingly extreme periods of drought and increasing water scarcity, it is important to get a better grip on water use in agriculture. After all, what impact does drought have, and can something be done about it? What role does evaporation play in this and what processes are involved? Deltares is investigating this in the WUNDER project with the aim of developing an improved model to understand the behavior of soil and vegetation during prolonged drought.

The construction of the IJmuiden Sea Lock has significantly deepened the bed of the North Sea Canal there. How has the deepened canal bed affected the fresh groundwater below it? Has the new situation increased the risk of the groundwater around the lock complex becoming saline? Deltares is conducting research on behalf of Rijkswaterstaat. ‘Groundwater changes very slowly, which is why you have to take measurements over a long period of time to be able to detect changes,’ says researcher Pieter Pauw.

"Sand is the most important and widely used resource after water!" reveals Tommer Vermaas who is a Coastal Geologist at Deltares. In fact, in some places in the world, there is already a shortage. Why is that and do we still have enough supply in the Netherlands? To properly map the sand situation in our own country, Deltares is developing an improved model together with TNO – Geological Survey of the Netherlands on request of Rijkswaterstaat to calculate our sand supply on the seabed.

Deltares employs people who work daily for a climate-resilient and resilient world. One of them is Margreet van Marle, researcher on the effects of natural disasters on society. How do we continue to function as a society if infrastructure fails due to flooding or wildfires, for example? This is the question Margreet deals with daily. What inspires her to work at Deltares? We asked Margreet: "What drives you?"

It is estimated that around 425,000 houses in the Netherlands have, or will have to, deal with foundation problems, such as rotting timber piles or shallow foundations in subsiding soils. Consequence: cracks, subsidence and even risk of collapse.

The number of wind turbines in the North Sea is growing rapidly. Good news for the energy transition, but the North Sea was already pretty crowded. Shipping, fishing and fossil fuel extraction also take place there, while new users are already presenting themselves: from floating solar parks to hydrogen production. Together with stakeholders, Deltares, TNO and MARIN investigated multifunctional use, or: how to make wind farms suitable for multiple users.

Industries such as power plants or desalination plants withdraw water from rivers or the sea for cooling or freshwater production. Several problems can arise at the water intakes. One such problem is that large amounts of aquatic plant residues and floating debris can clog the intake point. This can bring production to a halt, resulting in potential damage such as power cuts. Deltares developed an innovative real-time debris warning system in which machine learning is applied. This allows industry to respond quicker and take appropriate action.

At Deltares, our people work every day to develop solutions for the major challenges of our time. One of them is Sytse Riedstra, a project technician with a background in mechanical engineering. By designing and testing models of dykes and water flows, he contributes to making the Netherlands—and the world—a safer place. What inspires him to work at Deltares? We asked Sytse: "What drives you?"