Exploration
How can we achieve the transition from fresh to salt water in Lauwersmeer? Water safety is a prerequisite. We will be conducting an exploratory study until 2028.
Research with regional partners
How can we ensure a better transition between fresh and salt water at Lauwersmeer and the Wadden Sea? So that ecological water quality improves and there is a future for agriculture. And how can we also guarantee water safety with this solution? That is what this exploratory study is all about. Until 2028, we will be working with local partners to investigate how we can best achieve the freshwater-saltwater transition.
Water safety forms basis for exploration
Water safety is a prerequisite for this approach. Excess water from Friesland, Groningen, and North Drenthe is currently discharged into the sea via the R.J. Cleveringsluizen locks. In the future, increased rainfall will require us to discharge more water more frequently via the Lauwersmeer. As part of the exploratory study, we are investigating how we can continue to guarantee this.
Collaboration
Cooperation with governments, administrators, nature organizations, farmers, and other stakeholders is important for the project. This allows us to carefully weigh the interests of nature, water quality, water safety, and agriculture.
Saltwater monitoring network is the first step
The saltwater monitoring network allows us to build up knowledge of the water system. This helps us choose the best solution (a preferred alternative) for a more natural transition between fresh and salt water at Lauwersmeer and the Wadden Sea.
Programmatic Approach to Large Water Bodies
The project is part of the Programmatic Approach to Large Water Bodies (PAGW). The Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management (IenW) has awarded a contribution of €10 million on behalf of PAGW for the exploration of a more natural freshwater-saltwater transition between Lauwersmeer and the Wadden Sea. The first part of this contribution will be used for the realization of the saltwater monitoring network and the start of the exploration.
The PAGW is a national program run by the Ministries of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security, and Nature (LVVN) and Infrastructure and Water Management, with the aim of improving ecological water quality and strengthening nature in the Netherlands' large waterways. The partners with whom the Noorderzijlvest Water Authority collaborates within the Programmatic Approach to Large Water Bodies (PAGW) Future-Proof Lauwersmeer are: Rijkswaterstaat North Netherlands, Staatsbosbeheer, and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency.