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Het Deltaplan

The Delta planWhat is a delta?

After the flood of January 31 1953 everyone was convinced that this could not happen again. The Government ordered a group of specialist to make a plan to prevent a disaster of this magnitude. This group was the Delta Committee and within four months, the flooded land was not even dry, they came with their first proposals. After one year the Delta Plan was born.

The four great sea-arms in the south-west of the Netherlands will be closed by dams. First they start to built the ‘simple’ dams and the more complex projects will be saved for later.

Old map
Old map For the tidal movements and the water currents the closings must be done in a specific order. In that time, the fifties, the waters could not be closed by just a dam. By doing this greater problems will be created up river. Also for economical reasons shipping and fishing must be ensured. Therefore a complex of locks, sluices, channels, bridges, slides and gates must be designed.

First the Delta Plan involved only the south-west part of the Netherlands but soon the Plan included all shores and river banks by building new dikes and by restoring, rebuilding and re-enforcing old dikes and dunes.