Emergency alarm for the IJmuiden pumping station
Today, the House of Representatives is discussing the priorities for infrastructure projects. A top priority is the IJmuiden drainage and pumping station complex. The risk of the pumping station failing is growing because it is severely outdated. Moreover, climate change is only increasing the need to expand the pumping station’s capacity.
If the pumping station fails, water from the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal and the North Sea Canal cannot be drained. A large part of the Randstad could then flood, including Schiphol, Amsterdam, and Utrecht. Approximately 4 million Dutch people could be affected. That is why, together with various stakeholders, we are calling on the House of Representatives to invest in a new pumping station. Only then can we keep the northwest region of the Netherlands safe and functioning.
Klazien Hartog, portfolio holder for integrated urban water management: "It is unthinkable that no budget would be allocated for a new pumping station to keep the entire region dry. If the IJmuiden pumping station is not replaced in the near future, our area faces a very high risk of flooding because, during heavy or prolonged rainfall, we discharge into the North Sea Canal and thus via IJmuiden. Not only will our area be affected, but also the surrounding water boards that also discharge via IJmuiden. The pumping station is in dire need of replacement; it has already nearly failed a few times because it malfunctioned and is at the end of its life. It would be a huge mistake if no budget were set aside for this now."
