Stepping up to the water, climate and sustainability needs

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards led a delegation of business and state leaders on an economic development, water management and resiliency mission to the Netherlands last week.

The visit is the result of an invitation from the Kingdom of the Netherlands Special Envoy for International Water Affairs, Ambassador Henk Ovink, who accompanied Governor Edwards and the delegation, and discussed the latest Dutch flood risk and water management advancements.

“Working together on water starts with understanding and valuing water better,” said Mr. Ovink.

“Louisiana and the Netherlands share similar challenges and opportunities, and importantly have a shared ambition to step up to the water, climate and sustainability needs.”

“This visit comes at a critical time in the run up to next year’s UN 2023 Water Conference – only the second one ever, and the first in 46 years.”

“Forging coalitions such as the one between Louisiana and the Netherlands and staging our best practices at the UN 2023 Water Conference, can inspire the world to scale up and replicate the needed actions,” added the Ambassador.

The U.S. delegation also visited the Deltares campus in Delft to exchange best practice examples and tour the facilities – including the Delta Flume.

The officials were hosted by Dirk-Jan Walstra (Director Hydraulic Engineering Deltares), Rosh Ranasinghe (coastal expert and IPCC-author) and Wiebe de Boer (expert ports and harbours).

Commenting the visit, Mr. Walstra said: “Governor Edwards’ visit was inspiring and timely. We had a frank exchange of ideas and discussed the challenges facing both Louisiana and the Netherlands.”

“As low-lying deltas, climate change and sea level rise have a huge impact on our regions.”

“We were also proud to show Governor Edwards and the delegation the Deltares experimental facilities, including the Delta Flume, and stressed the importance of using these facilities alongside our software to provide sound knowledge-based advice for policy makers.”

“With Deltares and the Water Institute, this partnership has an inspiring and innovative base to build off on, with commitments for catalytic actions, towards 2023 and beyond,” added Mr. Ovink.

Deltares’ Delta Flume is a versatile, indispensable facility that can be used for numerous projects: coastal, harbour and offshore structures.

The facility is 300 metres long, 9.5 metres deep and 5 metres wide. This length is needed to simulate wave formation on gradually rising coasts.

The depth makes it possible to generate waves up to 4.5 metres high. Waves this big cannot be generated anywhere else in the world.

This major advance requires a 10-metre-high wave board ( supplied by the American company MTS) that will be moved to and for using hydraulic cylinders, said Deltares.

The Delta Flume can be used for studies in which major factors affecting the results include not only large water movements but also the detailed flows in small spaces between stones and sand or clay.

The delegation included representatives from the Louisiana Economic Development, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, The Water Institute of the Gulf, the Port of New Orleans and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.

They explored flood control challenges the Netherlands is currently facing, examined solutions that could be applied to risk reduction in Louisiana, while also sharing their expertise and experiences.

During the visit, the Governor Edwards saw first-hand the Noordwaard polder project, part of the Room for the River Programme.

The Programme is one of the Netherlands’ most ambitious and innovative flood control infrastructure innovations.

Frans Klijn (flood risk expert at Deltares) gave a presentation about the challenges and impact of this project and gave them a tour around the polder.

The U.S. delegation also visited Kinderdijk to see the historic application of Dutch flood risk management.