The Delta Model for Fresh Water Policy Analysis in the Netherlands

Abstract

During dry years, such as 2003 and the early summer of 2011, the Netherlands faces water shortages, salt intrusion, navigation limitations and problems with availability of cooling water for power plants. Considering the changing climate, the frequency of these problems is expected to increase. A policy analysis using an integrated set of models has been launched by the government: the Dutch Delta Programme. The Delta model is the consistent set of models for analysing the decisions related to the long-term fresh water supply and flood risk management of the Netherlands. The country-wide SOBEK-1D hydrodynamic surface water model (LSM) was developed as part of the Delta model and forms the link between the Netherlands Hydrological Instrument (NHI) and impact assessment models for salinity, temperature, water quality, aquatic ecology and navigation. The Delta model provides a computational facility that automates the workflow of running sets of interconnected models for the national policy analysis on fresh water and various regional programmes within the Delta Programme. The Delta model, although being computationally demanding, enabled analyses of the present situation, future scenarios (2050 and 2100) and possible adaptation measures. Moreover, the Delta model has supported consistency between the national analyses and regional analyses in the Delta Programme.

Development of a New Generation of Flood Inundation Maps—A Case Study of the Coastal City of Tainan, Taiwan

“…Physically-based computational model SOBEK which was developed by Deltares (https://www.deltares.nl/en/) was used in the present work. SOBEK has been successfully applied in various flood forecasting, drainage system optimization, irrigation system control, sewer overflow design, river morphology, salt intrusion and surface water quality studies [44,[50][51][52][53][54].…”

“…Carrivick [49] used a SOBEK 2D hydrodynamic model to reconstruct the characteristics of high-magnitude outburst floods in the proglacial area of Kverkfjöll, Iceland, in anastomosing networks of simultaneously inundated channels. The country-wide SOBEK 1D hydrodynamic model (abbreviated LSM) was developed to model the surface water distribution as part of the Delta model, which is a set of models used to analyze the decisions related to the long-term fresh water supply and flood risk management in the Netherlands [51,52]. Linde et al [55] used the SOBEK model to simulate low-probability flood peak events in the Rhine basin.…”

Climate Change Induced Salinization of Drinking Water Inlets along a Tidal Branch of the Rhine River: Impact Assessment and an Adaptive Strategy for Water Resources Management

“…This Northern Delta Basin (NDB) model is part of the Dutch National Water Model (NWM), a set of hydraulic and hydrological models and tools set up to support the national fresh water policy [11]. With the NWM model, the hydrology and water distribution throughout The Netherlands can be calculated [12][13][14]. From this, boundary conditions are extracted for the nested and more detailed NDB model [13][14][15].…”

An analytical framework for strategic delta planning: negotiating consent for long-term sustainable delta development

“…Most research on strategic delta planning has focused on the content in the planning process (Klijn et al, 2015, Prinsen et al, 2014, the connection between knowledge and policy (Werners et al, 2015) and framing as a strategy for agenda setting and policy adoption Verduijn et al, 2012;Vink et al, 2013). To date, no frameworks have been presented to analyze strategic delta planning as part of a longer-term development process in deltas and the connections and disconnects between past development efforts, new planning and implementation.…”