Delta Life Nr. 6 September 2016

DELTARES, September 2016

BUTTER, CHEESE AND

LAND SUBSIDENCE

Through polderisation, the Netherlands 'did away' with approximately 20 cubic

kilometres of peat in the last thousand years. That is the equivalent of 20,000

Pyramids of Giza. Researchers from Deltares, Utrecht University and TNO have

estimated that this has produced emissions of 0.39 ppm CO

: roughly the

same as the annual carbon emissions of the entire

European Union. A timeline.

2016

Delft

A third of the

country is now

below sea level

and we depend

on sophisticated

water manage-

ment. The annual

carbon emissions

caused by peat

drainage match

the total emis-

sions of Cambo-

dia or Nicaragua.

There are no

easy solutions:

allowing the water

table to rise again

could slow down

peat oxidation but

it would lead to

the flooding of cit-

ies and farmland.

1016

Utrecht

From 4000 BC

onward, partly

decayed plants

and mosses start

to accumulate

in the western

and northern

Netherlands.

Small towns are

established in the

damp swamps. In

the Middle Ages,

dikes are built

around large peat

areas, creating

polders where

cereals such as

rye are grown.

1255

Leiden

Dutch cities

expand. More

land is drained by

building dikes and

digging ditches.

The water table

falls and the peat

is exposed to the

air: it oxidises,

and the ground

subsides. Carbon

stored in the

organic material

is released in the

form of CO2.

1421

Gouda

Subsidence

continues and

floods ravage

the country. The

Netherlands in-

stalls windmills to

pump water out

of polders that

are just above

sea level. Many

areas are still wet

and so they can

only be used as

pasture land for

cattle. Milk pro-

duction increases

and cheese is a

popular way of

disposing of the

resulting milk

surplus.

1602

Amsterdam

The Dutch econo-

my flourishes due

to the Dutch East

India Company.

More land and

energy are needed

to meet growing

demand. Peat

is extracted as

a fossil fuel. The

economy runs on

peat and 3 mega-

tonnes of CO2 are

emitted annually.

The Netherlands

is now the world's

largest consumer

of fossil fuel.

1886

Rotterdam

Powerful steam

engines replace

the windmills.

More land can

now be drained

and the water

table can be

lowered even

further. The peat

that can be used

as fuel runs out:

coal and oil are

now the main

energy sources.