# Polder south of Amsterdam becomes emergency flood overflow area

> The Amstel, Gooi en Vecht water board has finished the inlet that lets De Ronde Hoep take up to 2.4 billion litres of water, to keep about 1.4 million people in and around Amsterdam dry.

Climate · published 2026-11-13 05:45 · https://nlnow.nl/a/polder-south-of-amsterdam-becomes-emergency-flood-overflow-area/

The water board (waterschap) Amstel, Gooi en Vecht has completed an inlet structure along the Amstel, making polder De Ronde Hoep in Ouder-Amstel an emergency overflow area. As a last resort, the sluices would be opened and up to 2.4 billion litres of water would flow into the polder.

The aim is to prevent about 1.4 million residents of Amsterdam and surrounding municipalities from being flooded. The province of Noord-Holland instructed the water board to create the overflow area.

Only when all other measures prove insufficient can the safety region decide to flood the polder, which covers more than 600 hectares. Board member Arjan van Rijn said that would happen only under a very exceptional combination of circumstances, such as extreme rainfall, a particular wind direction and high water levels at sea, in the IJmeer and in the Markermeer.

The water board has already set up a compensation scheme for residents, most of them farmers. It pays full compensation for damage to houses or barns, pays farmers for lost milk income and covers protective measures to prevent damage.

“We hope never to have to use this site,” Van Rijn said at the handover. “Flood safety also means thinking ahead. Based on what we know now, we should never need this emergency overflow area. But we might have to use this polder once in a hundred years, as a last resort.”

## Background

- **waterschap**: A water board is a regional public authority responsible for managing water in its area. It maintains dikes, canals, polders, and water levels, and it treats wastewater. In the Netherlands, waterschappen are elected by voters, and their decisions affect flood protection and water management for local residents and landowners.
- **veiligheidsregio**: A safety region is a regional partnership of municipalities and emergency services, such as fire, police, and ambulance, that prepares for and manages disasters and crises. It coordinates responses to events like floods, fires, and major accidents within its area. Decisions taken during a crisis, such as flooding an area to protect a larger region, are made through this regional structure.

From NLnow, news from the Netherlands in English. How stories are made: https://nlnow.nl/about/