Album of the Day: Revengeseekerz – Jane Remover

Today we visited one of the most important engineering projects within the Netherlands, the delta works! The delta works are a set of engineering projects that focus on heavy water management in Dutch rivers, especially in relation to connecting them to the ocean. One of the main projects within the delta works was a massive set of dams that can be controlled to protect the rivers from receiving too much water during storms and surges. These delta works are incredibly essential to modern Dutch infrastructure as they exist to prevent the massive flooding caused by storms and other weather disasters. The delta works originate from the delta plan, which was a set of conceptual and legal frameworks that assessed the cost and guidelines of future flood protection infrastructure. The delta works are the culmination of the research and economic assessment done by the Dutch government post WWII. The storm surge barriers developed as a part of the delta plan are incredibly complex, allowing the sea to continue into the rives while still allowing the situational protection required in the Netherlands. The barriers being controllable also preserved the nature and sea life present within the saltwater rivers that flow through the Netherlands. The installation of these barriers is also incredibly interesting, requiring completely new ships that could carry these massive barriers from a storage zone to where they need to be deployed. Overall, the delta works are incredibly cool pieces of both Dutch history and engineering that show us that we don’t always have to compromise the environment to keep everyone safe.

The area around the delta works we went to is also considered a nature reserve here in the Netherlands, which means it had some fun attractions. After all the engineering talk, me and the others got to enjoy a nice boat tour of the delta works and a few windmills. This was promptly followed by some time watching some of the sea life kept in the reserve. I got to see a seal show, which was incredibly adorable (please take me back!!). I also got to see a sea lion, which was very nice. Aside from the animals, all of us quite enjoyed the slide, including our tour guide Enno! I had an amazing time here, even though I was a little sick!