WNF - The Dream of the Haringvliet
The Haringvliet used to be the most important river mouth of the rivers Meuse and Rhine. This estuary, with a gradual transition between fresh and salt water, sediment transport and strong tidal dynamics, used to be a highly productive ecosystem, with unique species. It was the entrance and exit for migratory fish. When in 1971 the rivers were closed from the sea by the Haringvliet dam, the rich estuarine ecosystem heavily deteriorated. The area became a stagnant freshwater lake, with algae seasonal blooming problems and ample migration possibilities for migratory fish, like salmon and eel.
In 2018, the Haringvlietdam will be opened (a little) by the Dutch government. Six large Dutch nature organizations have joint forces to optimally use this development and think beyond 2018. They aim to bring back dynamics for real estuarine nature, migratory fish and birds. The organisations started the project ‘Dream of the Haringvliet’ which is among others funded by the Postcode Lottery of the Netherlands. The project consist of six large activities.