Allowing Natural Sedimentation in the Nieuwe Waterweg to Reduce Salinity Intrusion and the Effects of Sea Level Rise

Authors

  • Maarten Kleinhans
  • Silke Baltussen
  • Eise Nota
  • Jana Cox
  • Han Meijer
  • Jasper Hugtenburg

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Keywords:

Sea level rise, Dredging, Port, Salinity intrusion, Analogue scale modeling

Abstract

The Nieuwe Waterweg is the artificial mouth of the Rhine and Meuse Rivers in the Netherlands and an important shipping channel for the Port of Rotterdam. The channel, about a half-kilometer wide, is dredged to depths of more than 16 m to allow navigation. This substantial depth has adverse effects on flood safety, ecology and salinity intrusion in the lower river system. Mitigating these effects through engineering is costly and increasingly unviable with rising sea levels. A straightforward, nature-based alternative is to allow natural sedimentation, gradually making the channel shallower again while the port continues to expand seaward. We present 1:1000 scale physical experiments as a future vision for sedimentation in the ports and the Nieuwe Waterweg. The observed behavior aligns with that of similar estuaries and ports worldwide, demonstrating the broader applicability of this approach. Based on the current sediment budget, the sedimentation rate is estimated 0.5–1.0 m per decade. If transitional and structural changes in port logistics are coordinated with this sedimentation rate, the port economy can be expected to benefit.

How to Cite

Kleinhans, M., Baltussen, S., Nota, E., Cox, J., Meijer, H., & Hugtenburg, J. (2025). Allowing Natural Sedimentation in the Nieuwe Waterweg to Reduce Salinity Intrusion and the Effects of Sea Level Rise. Blue Papers, 5(1). Retrieved from https://bluepapers.nl/index.php/bp/article/view/209

Published

2025-11-18

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 1 (2026): Water & Heritage for Sustainable Development

Section

methodologies and case studies

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Maarten Kleinhans, Silke Baltussen, Eise Nota, Jana Cox, Han Meijer, Jasper Hugtenburg

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Author Biographies

Maarten Kleinhans

Maarten Kleinhans is a professor of the bio-geomorphology of rivers and tidal systems at Utrecht University. He invented the Metronome flume (www.uu.nl/metronome) to create experimental models of estuaries at a 1:1000 scale and leads research programs combining experimental and numerical modelling.

Silke Baltussen

Silke Baltussen graduated with an MSc in Earth Science from Utrecht University, with a focus on the geomorphology of rivers and coastal systems. Her master’s thesis was on the Metronome experiments representing part of the Nieuwe Waterweg, followed by an internship on mud dynamics in a Wadden Sea port.

Eise Nota

Eise Nota is a PhD candidate at Utrecht University working on experiments in the Metronome to simulate estuaries and study their bar and channel network dynamics. Eise also specializes in applying photogrammetry to optimize data processing from multiple instruments.

Jana Cox

Jana Cox is an assistant professor at Utrecht University specializing in sustainable delta systems and coastal communities. She works in conjunction with the Delta Climate Center in Vlissingen (the Netherlands). Jana did her PhD research on multiscale sediment dynamics of the lower Rhine-Meuse system and studied effects of dredging and sea level rise in the Metronome.

Han Meijer

Han Meijer is Emeritus Professor of Urbanism at Delft University of Technology. His research focused on urban and port development in deltas and estuaries. He participated in the Tweestromenland consortium to address the potentially locked-in situation using a complex adaptive systems approach.

Jasper Hugtenburg

Jasper Hugtenburg is a senior landscape architect with H+N+S Landscape Architects and team leader of the Tweestromenland team. Currently (2024–2025) he is enjoying a sabbatical year as adjunct professor at the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture of the University of British Columbia.

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