Annual plan 2026: water-management work will continue to cost more

Major challenges

The challenges in water management remain significant and require substantial annual investments in safe dykes, managing peak rainfall and the effects of dry spells, and treating wastewater. Management and maintenance costs are rising accordingly. This trend has been ongoing throughout the country for several years. Water rates for 2026 will increase by an average of 9.3% for households in the Noorderzijlvest Water Authority region.

Why is water-management work becoming more expensive?

Work continues unabated on strengthening dykes and maintaining flood defences in accordance with standards. The capacity to temporarily store water when heavy rainfall threatens safety is being increased. Pumping stations are being prepared to discharge larger quantities of water. 
This Annual Plan focuses on improving water quality to make water cleaner and healthier. For 2026 and the years that follow, maintenance costs for wastewater treatment plants in Leek and Garmerwolde will be higher. Major maintenance is required. A positive consequence is that this modernisation will improve the results of the treatment process. This means that increasingly cleaner treated water will return to the surface water. Measures in the landscape that will eventually result in cleaner surface water that can also remain in the area for longer also cost a lot of money: re-meandering streams that were once straightened, constructing miles of nature-friendly banks and fish passages are examples of such investments.

Leading the way in working together on water and soil

All this work is being prepared. The water authority increasingly involves the local community in this process. This means that planning takes a little longer, but it is also done more carefully, with greater attention to the interests at stake in the area. This is important because only through sustainable cooperation can we create added value for the entire area. The water authority is extremely clear on its position in this cooperation: Noorderzijlvest wants to take the lead in working together on water and soil issues. 

Higher costs, particularly in water-treatment levy

In the coming years, the water authority will spend a significant amount of money on maintaining and modernising wastewater treatment plants, among other things. In total, we will be spending €43.6 million on treatment in 2026. This will rise to €54.3 million in 2030. 
These expenses will be covered directly by the so-called water-treatment levy. That portion of the water rates that is spent specifically on our core statutory task: treating wastewater. It is that portion that will certainly result in higher rates for rate payers in 2026. The total increase for households will be between €7 and €55 per year. This depends on whether it is a single-person or multi-person household and whether the household lives in an owner-occupied or rented home. 

Decision

On 26 November, the Board of Directors took a decision on the 2026 Annual Plan, including setting the water rates.