Cycling water managers cycle 375 km across the NAP zero meter line
On June 20, more than 1,200 cyclists will take part in the ClimateClassic: a bike ride from Breda to Groningen to raise awareness of the consequences of climate change and how to prevent it. Together, they will form a colorful ribbon winding its way across the Netherlands, covering a distance of 375 kilometers.
Relay race at every water board boundary
The water authorities along the route are participating with nine water authority relay teams, consisting of almost seventy employees and board members. At each water authority boundary, they will hand over the baton—a water bottle containing their climate pledges—to the next team.
The Noorderzijlvest team
The Noorderzijlvest Water Authority is participating with a team of eleven people, including board member Jeroen Niezen. At around 8:30 p.m., this team will take over the baton from the cyclists of Wetterskip Fryslân, near Veenhuizen. They will then cycle the final stage of the ClimateClassic, approximately 32 kilometers. They expect to finish between 9:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. The finish line and end point of the ClimateClassic is at the Sugar Factory in Groningen (Stadslab, Energieweg, 9743 AN Groningen).
The ClimateClassic is an initiative of Cycling4Climate.
Cycling4Climate organizes cycling events with the aim of raising awareness about the climate crisis and getting people active in a fun way. Els Otterman, executive board member of the De Stichtse Rijnlanden Water Authority, took the initiative to participate in the route with the water authorities: "As water authorities, we already deal with the consequences of climate change every day. Think of periods of prolonged drought and extreme downpours. These will only occur more frequently in the future. This has many consequences for our cities and villages, our dikes, and our rural areas.
'Every shovel in the ground must be climate-proof,' our Delta Commissioner said recently. However, responding to the consequences of climate change is not enough. We must all work together to reduce CO2 emissions. As water authorities, we invest millions of euros every year in major projects such as dike reinforcements and the maintenance of dikes, waterways, pumping stations, weirs, locks, and sewage treatment plants. The scale of these projects offers market parties opportunities to become more sustainable and seek innovative solutions. Emission-free and circular working practices are thus becoming the new standard. Of course, this is not yet a given, which is why we are keen to show how cooperation can help us move forward with this water authority relay.
The route taken by the cyclists was not chosen at random: it largely follows the NAP zero meter line, which, if we continue on the current path, will become the new coastline. Without the pumping stations and dikes of the water boards, this would already be the case.