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Management

Integrated

Management

Integrated

From Concepts to Good Practice

Case Study 4

The Delfland Basin and Delfland Water Board, The Netherlands

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Acknowledgments

This Briefing Note Series was prepared by Peter Mil-

lington, consultant, previously Director-General of the

New South Wales Department of Water Resources and

Commissioner on the Murray-Darling Basin Commission,

Australia; Douglas Olson, World Bank Principal Water

Resources Engineer and Task Manager for this Briefing

Note Series; and Shelley McMillan, World Bank Water

Resources Specialist.

Guy Alaerts (Lead Water Resources Specialist) and

Claudia Sadoff (Lead Economist) of the World Bank

provided valuable inputs.

The authors thank the following specialists for reviewing

the Notes: Bruce Hooper and Pieter Huisman (consul-

tants); Vahid Alavian, Inger Anderson, Rita Cestti Jean

Foerster, Nagaraja Harshadeep, Tracy Hart, Karin Kemper,

Barbara Miller, Salman Salman, Ashok Subramanian, and

Mei Xie (World Bank staff).

The authors are also deeply grateful to the Bank-Nether-

lands Water Partnership Program (BNWPP) for support-

ing the production of this Series.

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Name of Organization: The Delfland Water Board

History of Establishment:

Floris V, Duke of Holland, recognized the Delfland Water

Board as the competent regional water authority in

1289. The board acquired the right to supervise and

control the construction and maintenance of the dikes

and watercourses, and was of higher rank than the

local shires. As soil subsidence continued, it became

necessary to create inner embankments, called polders,

from which surplus water was removed using windmills.

Every polder also acquired its own board. However, the

Delfland Water Board remained responsible for flood de-

fenses against storm surges and river floods, as well as

the boezem, the intermediate storage area between the

polders and the sea or river. Extensive reorganization in

1976 terminated the 59 polder water boards, and their

functions were taken over by the Delfland Board. The

province of South-Holland made Delfland responsible for

water quality management in 1974.

1

2

Figure 4.1. The Delfland Water Board Area

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3

1. Flooding

2. Drainage, flushing, and water supply

3. Pollution

Monks and farmers began to cultivate the land of Delfland

in the 11th century and it became a flourishing agricultural

area. As a result of cultivation, the soil began to subside.

Dikes needed to be built to protect life, cattle, and land

against flooding. Faced with continued regional flooding

since the 13th century, which hampered effective water

management, local communities began to elect representa-

tives for meetings to discuss and agree upon approaches

to flood defense and other related regional water manage-

ment issues. This led to the establishment of the Delfland

Water Board. Later, the Delfland Water Board also became

responsible for providing the water to flush the polders to

prevent salinization by brackish seepage. It also expanded

to serve agricultural, industrial, recreational, and other

purposes In the 1970s the Provincial Council charged

Delfland with combating water pollution.

Main Water Management Concerns:

Delfland has a small catchment area of 41,000 ha and is

densely populated, with 3,050 inhabitants/km2. It com-

prises 20 municipalities, including The Hague and large

parts of Rotterdam (see figure 4.1).

The water balance of Delfland for an average year:

Inflow

Precipitation 336.106 m3

Seepage 19.106 m3

Input for water supply in dry periods 42.106 m3

and flushing of the polders

Total 397.106 m3

Outflow

Evapotranspiration 245.106 m3

Discharge by pumping 152.106 m3

1,250,000

The Gross Regional Product per capita is approximately

US$36,940 in 2003.

Various services, small industries, glass house horticulture,

cattle, and recreation. More than 40,000 companies.

Area:

River Basin Flow:

Population:

Economy:

Main Economic Activities:

Basin Characteristics

4Mature autonomous, self-financing river basin organization. This RBO is an agency-type with regulatory functions, but

is also responsible for implementing works, notably wastewater treatment. The election system for the Delfland Water

Board was and still is based on the principle of “interest-payment-say.” The extent of an individual’s interest (size of

land) governs the tax payable by him or her to cover water management costs, as well as the level of participation in

the institution. The water boards, with their unique bottom-up election system, are the oldest democratic institution in

the Netherlands.

Type of Organization:

Figure 4.2. The Water-related Planning Structure in the Netherlands

Spatialplanning

National document on

spatial planning

Regional spatial plan

Local land use plan

Water management

National document on water

Provincial policy document

on water

Management plan for regional and local waters

Environmental protection

National environment policy plan

Provincial environment policy plan

Municipal sewerage plan

Nature conservation

National nature

policy plan

Structure scheme nature and landscape

Municipal environment programme

Water management plan for state

managed waters

National environmentprogramme

Structure scheme nature and landscape

Provincial environment programme

State

Province

Water board and municipality

Governing Level Policy Fields Character of the Plan

Strategic

Operational

Strategic

Operational

Operational

Harmonization obliged by law

Legal obligation to draft plan according to instructions of higher government

The only plan binding citizens

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1. Conceptual and Institutional Issues

The Netherlands’ Constitution charges Government and

Parliament to define the procedural rules for the creation

and termination of water boards by provincial by-law. The

Water Board Act of 1992 made the constitutional direc-

tives concrete in order to establish integrated (sub)river

basin management organizations. The municipality is

responsible for the sewerage system and for the collec-

tion of urban wastewater. Regional wastewater treatment

and water quality control of the regional surface waters

rest with the water board.

The current Dutch legislation prescribes periodic updat-

ing of the water policy, as well as its harmonization with

related policy fields. The legally binding harmonization

system is described in the framework of the Water

Management Act of 1989 (see figure 4.2).

2. Systems for Water-related Data

Since its creation in 1289, the Delfland Water Board has

collected a lot of data. The early data primarily concen-

trated on size of the participating drainage areas, water

levels, and dike conditions. Later, adjacent drainage

conditions were also monitored to ensure that sufficient

space was available to store water and discharge water at

low sea and river levels, to operate the draining windmills,

and to mitigate reclamation activities.

Until 1950, the water management data collected mainly

concerned water quantity volumes and chloride concen-

trations. Since then, all water relevant data, particularly

the water health parameters for water supply, recreation,

and nature areas, are monitored and summarized in

yearly reports. The summarized data are available on the

website of the Delfland Water Board: www.hhdelfland.nl.

This website also provides some information about the

various modeling systems used to simulate the hydrologic

and hydraulic changes in land and water use. There is also

a Delfland information help desk.

53. Basin-wide Policies and Strategies

The European Union has defined many policies and

strategies on water, including the conditions for urban

wastewater treatment. The 2000 Water Framework

Directive aims at an integrated approach to the policies

and strategies in order to protect the aquatic ecosystems,

ensure the sustainable use of water resources, further

reduce pollution, and mitigate the impacts of flood and

droughts. These goals are to be achieved stepwise from

2003 to 2027. Since the 1980s, arrangements for flood

control and rehabilitation of aquatic ecosystems have

been convened between the riparian states of the Rhine

and Meuse Basins.

Delfland is a small sub-basin in the Rhine delta. The

national agency Rijkswaterstaat, part of the Ministry

of Transport, Public Works, and Water Management, is

responsible for sharing and managing the Rhine water in

dry periods according to the policy detailed in the

Second Policy Document on Water (1985). In general,

water supply for agricultural interests is the highest

priority; navigation is the second. However at times,

ecological interests are given priority over agriculture,

navigation, cooling for energy production, recreation, and

other uses.

Maintaining the water levels in the polders and boezems

has the highest priority in all water boards — so much so

that sometimes when no freshwater is available, brackish

water is incorporated to prevent irreversible subsidence.

The Delfland Water Board grants licenses to extract, use,

and discharge water. A license is required for discharges

>100m3/hour and extraction >20m3/hour. Discharges or

extractions >10m3/hour must be reported to the Daily

Board. Besides these quantitative limits, every discharge

of contaminated water requires a license in which the

discharge conditions are prescribed, as well the need for

self-monitoring by the licensee. Water board officials

supervise the license conditions and the self-monitoring.

6 Charging for water resources management in the Neth-

erlands is based on the principle “interest-payment-say”

and its mirror, “polluter/user pays,” for local and regional

water management services. These charges are based on

the full cost recovery principle. For some purposes, such

as drinking water consumption, an additional tax is levied

by the national government in an attempt to limit water

use. Some 30 percent of the total water management

costs is financed from the national budget. The remaining

70 percent is covered by the users: residents, homeown-

ers and landowners, and polluting companies.

4. Participation and Communication

Voters vote for a new water board assembly every four

years. About 20 to 30 percent of the empowered voters

exercise their right to vote. Direct information to the

stakeholders is provided in the yearly assessment of

the water board taxes. If necessary, stakeholders are

informed about activities and projects in newspapers

and leaflets and the procedure to lodge against such

intentions. Stakeholders can legally require additional

information and gain access to additional documentation.

Stakeholders can complain against the intentions and

decisions of the water board and have the right to appeal

against decisions to higher authorities. The final appeal is

with the European Court.

5. Awareness Raising

This remains a very complicated issue, particularly for

events like extreme storm surges and river floods, as

it leads to the safety paradox; the higher the safety

standard, the less likely it is that a dangerous event will

take place and the greater the risk that dangers will be

more and more trivialized. Awareness-raising regarding

the “health of the river basin” is somewhat easier. Dutch

water boards have specially educated and trained staff

members to communicate with individuals, schools, pres-

sure groups, and others. These staff members often teach

3. Basin-wide Policies and Strategies

The European Union has defined many policies and

strategies on water, including the conditions for urban

wastewater treatment. The 2000 Water Framework

Directive aims at an integrated approach to the policies

and strategies in order to protect the aquatic ecosystems,

ensure the sustainable use of water resources, further

reduce pollution, and mitigate the impacts of flood and

droughts. These goals are to be achieved stepwise from

2003 to 2027. Since the 1980s, arrangements for flood

control and rehabilitation of aquatic ecosystems have

been convened between the riparian states of the Rhine

and Meuse Basins.

Delfland is a small sub-basin in the Rhine delta. The

national agency Rijkswaterstaat, part of the Ministry

of Transport, Public Works, and Water Management, is

responsible for sharing and managing the Rhine water in

dry periods according to the policy detailed in the

Second Policy Document on Water (1985). In general,

water supply for agricultural interests is the highest

priority; navigation is the second. However at times,

ecological interests are given priority over agriculture,

navigation, cooling for energy production, recreation, and

other uses.

Maintaining the water levels in the polders and boezems

has the highest priority in all water boards — so much so

that sometimes when no freshwater is available, brackish

water is incorporated to prevent irreversible subsidence.

The Delfland Water Board grants licenses to extract, use,

and discharge water. A license is required for discharges

>100m3/hour and extraction >20m3/hour. Discharges or

extractions >10m3/hour must be reported to the daily

board. Besides these quantitative limits, every discharge

of contaminated water requires a license in which the

discharge conditions are prescribed, as well the need for

self-monitoring by the licensee. Water board officials

supervise the license conditions and the self-monitoring.

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7

water management issues in schools. In general, the in-

formation relating to water in schools is placed in a wider

context. For example, global warming, its causes, and its

consequences on air, water, and soil quality are discussed

together. The vulnerability of the Netherlands to storm

surges and river floods is always a primary subject.

6. Monitoring and Assessing Sustainability

The conditions to achieve sustainability are set by the

national and international frameworks, objectives, and con-

ditions for river basin development. In the light of climate

change and its consequences, monitoring, regular status

reports, and mutual benchmarking — in the Rhine, Meuse,

and other EU river basins, as well as other basins world-

wide — are the “basin sustainable performance indicators.”

8Today, the “interest-payment-say” approach to the water

boards’ activities has broadened. Size of land is still a

recognized interest. However, other stakeholders, includ-

ing homeowners, inhabitants, industries, and companies

have interests in the activities of the water boards. They

also want proper flood defenses against storm surges

and river floods, as well as adequate water management:

draining in wet periods and supply during droughts. These

stakeholders pay the water board tax according to legally

established interest criteria. The water boards are also

responsible for wastewater treatment in their territory.

As the inhabitants, companies, and industries have a vest-

ed interest, they pay for the water quality activities of this

institution. The ruling “polluter pays” principle is mirrored

in the “interest-payment-say” concept by participation of

representatives of inhabitants, companies, and industries

in the water boards. The distribution of seats on the water

boards to cover the concerned categories of landowners,

homeowners, inhabitants, and business is constitutionally

defined by the Province, under approval of the national

government (figure 4. 3).

Tasks of the Organization and Staff Complement:

Representation on the Boards:

Inhabitants 19

Landowners 5

Owners of houses and buildings 13

Users of business facilities 5

Total seats 42

Staff members 370

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Figure 4.3. Composition of the Delfland Water Board

9

DAILY BOARD

General Assembly

Chairman Local Inhabitants (19) Landowners (5)

Owners of houses and buildings (13) Business Users (5)

Copyright © 2006THE WORLD BANK

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All rights reservedFirst printing February 2006

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