Dutch flood protection policy and measures based on risk assessment

Abstract

The Dutch Flood Protection Programme (DFPP) of The Netherlands is aimed at improving flood protection structures up to the newly derived safety standards. It is expected that roughly 50% of the primary flood protection structures need reinforcement with respect to newly derived safety standards. On a national level the necessary projects are ranked based on the actual flooding risk and fitted within the budget constraints. Additional goals of the DFPP are to improve performance in project management, to enhance the quality of more integral solutions and to expand the cooperation between all authorities involved. The DFPP is an alliance of the Dutch Water Authorities and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment, but also a methodology in which the Ministry, regional water authorities, scientific institutes, consultancy and construction companies participate.