Delta Life Nr. 3 February 2015

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2 DELTARES, FEBRUARY 2015 3
DELTARES
IN BRIEF
G uanabara Bay on the Brazilian
coast near Rio de Janeiro
will be cleaned up before the
Olympic Games in 2016.
Some events in the summer
games have been planned in the bay,
which has a serious problemwith waste
in the water. Deltares is developing a fore­
casting system that will show where the
waste is located in the bay, and how fast it
is moving in which direction. That allows
the eco-boats that clear up the waste to do
their work more effectively and efficiently.
With a surface area of more than 400 km2,
Guanabara Bay is Brazil’s second-largest
bay. This vast area was once home to
a rich and varied ecosystem but factors
such as urbanisation and deforestation
have led to severe pollution in recent
decades. Local people and companies
from the surrounding areas dump their
waste in rivers, and hardly any of it is
filtered out of the water.
The Deltares programs Delft-FEWS,
Delft3D-FLOW and PART are being used
for the hydrodynamic model. The project
is being supported by the Ministries of
Infrastructure and the Environment, and
Economic Affairs.
CLEANING UP RIO BAY
BEFORE 2016
ADAPTATION PATHS
TRAVEL THE WORLD
The ‘Adaptation paths method’ is
being used more and more around
the world. Deltares developed
this method to support water-
management planning in the long
term. It has already been used
in the Netherlands for the Delta
Programme, and more and more
countries are showing interest.
For example, the method has been
used in New Zealand to explore
strategies and manage flood risks
in consultation with the Hutt River
management agency. In Portugal, it
has been used to establish a picture
for coastal villages of the possible
strategies for combating coastal
erosion. In Prague, there have
been discussions with stakeholders
about possible approaches to future
flooding against a background of
more, or less, climate change. For a
description of the adaptation path
method, scan the code or go to
SHEET PILING CAN BE
THINNER
Sheet piling used to strengthen
dikes can be thinner than thought
previously. The steel corrodes less
than assumed in the past. This has
been demonstrated in a Deltares
study conducted for Rijkswater-
staat. On the basis of the study, the
guidelines for the corrosion of steel
sheet piling have been amended.
Thinner steel piling provides the
same level of flood protection but
leads to major savings on steel.
CREDITS
Delta Life is published by Deltares, an independent
institute for applied research in the field of water,
subsurface and infrastructure. Throughout the
world, we work on smart solutions, innovations
and applications for people, environment and
society. Our main focus is on deltas, coastal
regions and river basins.
For more information:
Editing desk:
P.O. Box 177, 2600 MH Delft,
The Netherlands
tel. (+31)088 335 8273,
A subscription is free and can
be requested or cancelled by
sending an e-mail to
Text: Deltares and
Maters & Hermsen
Journalistiek
Design and
layout:
Deltares en Maters &
Hermsen Vormgeving
Print:
Koninklijke BDU
Grafisch Bedrijf bv
ISSN: 2405-7673
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FRONT
COVER
Wetlands aren’t just
beautiful. They also
protect our coasts,
purify our water and
help in the fight against
climate change.
However, in the past
century, the total
wetlands surface area
has been more than
halved. That area is still
diminishing annually by
between two and five per
cent due to drainage,
land reclamation,
mining, unregulated
fish farming and
pollution, but also as
a result of rivers being
dammed, preventing
river sediment reaching
the wetlands. Restoring
them can be fraught
with difficulties and
setbacks. More on
page 20.
And also:
3. Deltares in brief
16. Infographic: the future-robust city
18. Mandy Korff on vibration and settlement damage
20. Wetlands: CO2 guzzlers, nurseries, water treatment
plants, breakwaters
22. Testing ground: subsurface infrastructure
23. Knowledge in operation: pulling steel cables across
the sea bed
27. Ecosystem services
28. Deltares software
29. Deltares organisation
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