Open AccessFlood risk management in the N etherlands after the 1953 flood: a competition between the public value(s) of water
Author(s) -
Correljé A.,
Broekhans B.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of flood risk management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.049
H-Index - 36
ISSN - 1753-318X
DOI - 10.1111/jfr3.12087
Subject(s) - flood risk management , flood myth , flooding (psychology) , dike , floodplain , environmental science , risk management , flood control , robustness (evolution) , hydrology (agriculture) , environmental resource management , environmental planning , risk analysis (engineering) , business , water resource management , geography , engineering , geology , geotechnical engineering , psychology , biochemistry , chemistry , cartography , archaeology , geochemistry , finance , psychotherapist , gene
Deltas like the N etherlands always face flooding risk. After the flood of 1953, flood risk management was geared towards achieving full safety, controlling the probability of flooding with high dikes and a shorter coastline. Yet, this approach became increasingly contested, as flood risk control was (re) linked to other values of water, like nature and landscape preservation and economic activities. This paper reconstructs how the process of policy making and implementation has sought to balance these multiple values over time. It shows that public values did not develop linearly into concrete standards and practices. Processes of re‐articulation and political renegotiation of the meaning and importance of water safety took different paths with regard to both the river systems and the coastline. Curves in these paths can be seen as feedback mechanisms that verify the robustness of flood risk management measures and/or respond to changes in the character of the public values involved.