- It has been three weeks since some serious rainfall in Eindhoven and the surrounding area. Waterschap (water board) De Dommel and the safety region are taking measures against a drought.
In the regional water board, a standard abstraction ban applies – from April to October north of Son en Breugel. In addition, the water board has declared a ban on abstraction in the southwest as of 10 June, west of Veldhoven. In Nuenen and Geldrop, it is forbidden to use water from ditches and streams to water crops, for instance. The dry period comes later than last year when the first abstraction ban was introduced in mid-May.
Protection of plants and animals
The withdrawal ban is badly needed, reports water board De Dommel: “We see that water levels in ditches and streams are dropping rapidly due to the drought of the past period. It has not rained for three weeks, and we expect too little rain to improve it in the coming weeks. Especially in the southern part of the Dommel area, the water level drops quickly if there is no rain. This part lies in the high sandy soils. An abstraction ban is necessary to keep the water quality good and protect plants and animals in and around the water.”
Risk of wildfires
The safety region is also taking the necessary measures in view of the drought. The longer the drought lasts, the greater the risk of wildfires. Veiligheidsregio (safety region) Brabant-Zuidoost announces that it immediately makes a risk analysis of a fire so that it quickly becomes clear whether the risk of expansion is high. If so, more firefighters can be deployed.
Quick response wildfire fighting crew (hand crew Zuid-Nederland)
The newly established wildfire fighting segment of the fire department (hand crew Zuid-Nederland) is an important tool for this. That happened after the Peel fire of 2020. The team consisting of some 25 firefighters should be able to reach hard-to-reach places in nature quickly. On 4 June, the team was deployed for the first time at a forest fire near the national park the Maasduinen in Bergen. That first experience went well, according to the safety region.
Accessible areas
Because prolonged droughts are becoming more common in the region, other lessons have also been learned in recent years. Accessibility of remote areas has been mapped better than before, and important access roads are better monitored by the manager or owner and maintained if necessary.
Water retention
In addition, it helps the safety region that water boards are working hard to retain water in natural areas better. Facilities for water to be usef for fire extinction have also been mapped out in this regard and constructed where necessary, according to Veiligheidsregio Brabant-Zuidoost.
Source: Studio040
Translator: Martijn
