DRAINING THE ZUYDER DEE

Hawera Star, Volume L, 29 November 1930, Page 16

DRAINING THE ZUYDER DEE

npilE: history of the Dutch people is a recount of .conflict on: every hand, of .wars with Spain, France and England. Yet none of these, has' been :a.s relentless as their age-long struggle with the ocean. On their conquest of the North 'Sea has depended the very existence of their homes, and their prosperity has been- built, on their enterprise abroad. Prevailing so far against her ancient enc'my, 'Holland now stands as one of the world’s 1 leading colonial powers, and local interest in her achievement was no doubt renewed by :ho arrival at. Auckland recently of three -ships- of her fleet.

Holland is now engaged! in the most, critical stage of her campaign; for her century-old' conflict with, the JSTorth Sea, over ready to submerge her hard-won, low-tying fields, her centres of trade and shipping, her old-world cities of culture, is drawing to a close with the greatest of all her undertakings l —hire draining of tlho Zuyd'er Zee.

The project is described in a report recently issued by Mr. P. H. Consul-General -cf the Netherlands for Australia and' New Zealand, who points out that the Zuy'der Zee was in ancient times in. vast lake, until the see broke through the isthmus, and the greatest sheltered waterway in Europe came into being. To this great harbour Amsterdam owed its rise in the (world of commerce. ißut with the growth of sandbanks across its outer passage the Zmyder Zee fell into disuse, and, the question of reclamation was raised by one Hendrik Steven, as early as >1'667. The rapid progress of engineering and the success which attended the efforts of the Dutch in reclamation of other parts of the Netherlands fostered the idea, until 1918, the plans submitted 1 by the late Dr. I. Lely, then Minister of Waterways, were approved by the Parliament of .Holland.

Twelfth Province Proposed

The Zuyder Zee works are divided into two sections, of which the second is dependent upon the first, namely, the enclosure of the tZuyd'er Zee against the North- Sea. and secondly, the drainage! -c-f .I'a'rge. parts of the present stretch of water. The “enclosure’’ is to take place by the construction of a gigantic d-a-m from, the shore of the province of Nordi-Holland over the island o'f Wieringe-n to the -shore of the province of Friesland. The section from Xord-Hollan'd to AVieringen, ai distance •of 20- .mile's, is already completed, and good progress is being made -with the remaining portion. The Zuyder Zee will thus be turned into an inland waterway -again, .which, by means of systematic drainage into tiro North Be a will receive -waters of the River Ysscl, and so became a. fresh-water reservoir for the siii-roimdij^^>onntrv Fronr the •Mti lo^J^Zityder Zee 550,000 acr@#»t>f Mnd will be- recovered. This £fred, wil be. divided into four section's, “polders” the firs't of which (the Worth- Wes ; ti Polder) will be ready for cultivation soon after the -completion l of "lm main darn in 1932. By the middle of this icen'tury the whole of the twelfth province of Holland) will have risen from the waters of the 'Zuyder Zee, with the “Yssel Lake” as its irirgation .centre. Thirty-five townships will be built on the new area, and the latest •method’ of town .planning will be applied) in. their erection. The estimated cost of the proje'et will approach the enormous total of £85,000,000. But a new .colony, wrung as it. were, from the heart of 'the sea, must b-e. o'f more than 1 m'onetary value to a progressive and virile race. If the Dutch are successful in their efforts to ’create a. territory which Will bo new to man and which will have been, acquired without prejudicing the interest of o'thor nations, then the expenditure involved in- the drainage of the Znvdov Zee will bo- doubly justified.