Amsterdam and Western Scheldt Regions, the Netherlands

Recent studies indicate that sea level rise in the Netherlands may be more severe than initially anticipated. As the body of knowledge on accelerated sea level rise has increased, so have the development and exploration of long-term orientations for addressing accelerated sea level rise, especially in research-by-design-based studies. This chapter elaborates on the potential water system and land use impacts of the formulated orientations for flood risk protection (also including accommodation, coastal advancement, and strategic retreat). In addition, two local scale design studies are illustrated that demonstrate how these conceptual orientations can be applied while simultaneously improving spatial quality.