A heat wave is coming and there will probably be hardly any rain until the end of August. This is despite the fact that the Netherlands already has a water shortage and comparable situations have led to major wildfires in recent years. Do we have to worry? Four questions about our drinking water and the risk of wildfires.
Is there still enough drinking water?
Yes. A tour of NU.nl along eight of the ten Dutch water companies shows that there is still enough stock. WML, Evides, Waterbedrijf Groningen, Drents Drinkwater, PWN Waterleidingbedrijf Noord-Holland and Waternet report that they still have enough water. Vitens and Brabants Water also do not fear any problems during the coming heat wave.
A dry period does not mean that the water companies cannot build up new stock. For example, Vitens can extract water from deeper soil layers when the upper layers have dried out.
Could a problem arise?
According to CEO Jelle Hannema, a problem could arise at Vitens (especially the Northern and Eastern Netherlands) at the beginning of September. But then it must remain dry until then and the 5.2 million households and companies with a Vitens connection must continue to use water en masse. “In the worst case, a thin trickle of water can come out of the tap,” Hannema said on Monday in the NPO Radio 1 program. Sven at 1.
This fear does not apply to all water companies. Brabants Water says that at the beginning of September there may be more demand for water than can be produced. WML, Evides, Water Company Groningen, Drents Drinking Water and Waternet all say that they still have enough water in stock for a few months. For example, PWN can extract plenty of water from the IJsselmeer.
If a problem arises then, it will always be temporary. “You fill storage cellars for water at night, when no one uses water. So you start every day with a new stock,” explains a spokesperson for Brabants Water. So they only have to pump deeper to get those cellars filled again.
Are there already measures in place because of the drought?
Yes. For example, there is a ban on spraying for agriculture in parts of the country. Not because there would otherwise still be a drinking water shortage, but so that drinking water companies do not have to pump too deep.
That’s right. Now that it is so dry, farmers often use groundwater instead of water from streams, for example (that is also prohibited in parts of the Netherlands). Because farmers are no longer allowed to use groundwater, drinking water companies can make full use of it.
In addition, a Water Shortage Management Team has been set up that has drawn up a water distribution plan. If the groundwater and water in the rivers and lakes become too low, they determine who and what gets water first. First, for example, water goes to flood defenses and dikes, because they can rupture without water. Then it is the turn of the drinking water companies. Industry and agriculture would come later.
And what about citizens? Among others, chairman of the water shortage team Michelle Blom and Minister of Water Management Mark Harbers asked the Dutch to “think carefully whether they should wash their car or fill their inflatable swimming pool completely”. A striking remark, since there is still plenty of drinking water.
Such a call would include: solidarity with the farmers and skippers. The request is also not completely out of the blue. If millions of people wash their cars and fill swimming pools at the same time, it is bad for the water pressure. And more importantly: then the stock will shrink quickly, while the pump will have to be pumped deeper anyway.
Should we fear wildfires?
The ongoing drought increases the risk of wildfires. For example, the Netherlands Fire Brigade has classified all regions into ‘level 2‘. This means that the fire brigade throughout the country is extra alert to the occurrence of wildfires.
A spokesperson tells NU.nl that the fire service can also scale up more easily in phase 2. “That could mean that instead of one fire truck, we can immediately send four to eight.” In addition, people are asked not to barbecue or light a campfire. “No fire in or near nature.”
The question is whether large-scale firefighting deployment on all days is feasible. The last major wildfires in 2020 eventually stopped due to a special cause: the corona crisis. As a result, many volunteers were available and the Ministry of Defense was able to fully assist because exercises abroad were canceled.
Without those windfalls, the outcome of the fires could have been different, researchers at the Court of Audit concluded. In short: that makes such a ‘no fire in nature’ appeal all the more relevant.
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