Much of the wetlands for which the Netherlands has a special international responsibility can be found in the floodplains of the main rivers. Areas such as the Gelderse Poort and the Waal River near Nijmegen, as well as the floodplains along the Nederrijn and IJssel rivers are Special Protection Areas under the EU Birds Directive. The floodplains are particularly important for breeding birds and water birds.

Nature can profit from flood protection measures

Flood protection is a major concern underlying the policy for the Rhine-Meuse delta. Since the high water levels and flooding in the1990s the policy emphasis has been on improving safety through programmes such as the Delta Plan for the Main Rivers and the Space for the Rivers land use policy. 

This flood protection policy can provide a stimulus for nature policy because landscape works will be carried out in large areas of the river floodplains. The land use and landscape measures should ideally be designed with biodiversity conservation and habitat restoration in mind. This will require a flexible approach to find space for all the objectives and sound cooperation between the three government departments involved.

At the start of the 1990s the development of alluvial forest was one of the main conservation objectives. As safety has gained in importance, enthusiasm for developing alluvial forest has waned because such dense vegetation would impede the free flow of water. The growth of tall herbs and brush vegetation, which can develop into alluvial forest, is making the preparation of management plans to guarantee the safe flow of water an increasingly urgent matter. However, it is unclear who (central government, provinces, land managers) should take the lead and who will pay the management costs.

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