Recap of the Red&Blue Symposium 2024

Water and Soil as Guiding Principles: Working Towards Implementation in the Dutch Built Environment

Authors: Abdi Mehvar, Isabelle Snaauw, Tom Daamen

Introduction

The third annual Red&Blue Symposium was held at Utrecht University on 11 October 2024. The event provided an opportunity to bring the entire Red&Blue consortium together again, aiming at reflecting on the second year of the program, sharing insights and progress on the Red&Blue’s research agenda, and looking ahead to the future of the five-year program. The event also provided ample opportunity for the Red&Blue community to strengthen relationships, foster collaborations, and align research with the latest developments in policy and practice.

The participants, around sixty representatives from academia and various professional fields such as urban planning, property development, flood risk management, climate finance, real estate investment, climate adaptation, and spatial governance, actively engaged in meaningful discussions on ‘Water en Bodem Sturend’ (WBS). In interactive sessions, consortium partners shared and exchanged insights on the key question: ‘‘How to embed WBS as guiding principle for spatial development in the Dutch built environment?’’.

This report provides a short overview of the event and the discussions. Read the full report here.

Opening Remarks

‘‘Towards Collaborative Governance Approach’’

The symposium was opened by Ellen van Bueren, Professor of Urban Development Management at TU Delft and Red&Blue program lead. She provided an overview of the program, emphasizing its focus and accomplishments over the past two years while outlining the direction for the upcoming year. ‘‘While in the first year, we focused on recruiting researchers, forming teams, and getting to know each other, the second year shifted toward making climate science and learned lessons actionable.’’ She also outlined the focus for the program’s third year, which will be on developing a collaborative governance approach.

‘‘How can we coordinate our individual and collective efforts to adapt, mitigate, and prepare for the impacts of climate change?’’ – Ellen van Bueren

Keynote 1

‘‘Embracing Knowledge and Collaboration for a Resilient Delta’’

Co Verdaas, Professor of Area Development at TU Delft and National Delta Programme Commissioner, highlighted the growing challenges of climate change and the necessity of a resilient delta to sustain a vital economy and society. He underscored Red&Blue’s role as a platform for integrating multidisciplinary knowledge and stressed the complexity of addressing climate issues collectively. “We cannot solve these challenges, we can only deal with them,” Verdaas stated, encouraging openness and collaboration.

“Share your dilemmas and ask for help. Only then can we come up with solutions together.” – Co Verdaas

Keynote 2

‘‘Dutch Policy on Spatial Planning: Revisiting Water and Soil as Guiding Principles’’

René Vrugt, the Directorate-General for Water and Soil at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, delivered the day’s second keynote. Citing large-scale programs like “Room for the River”, Vrugt discussed the need for strategic location choices and shared responsibilities to prevent climate burdens from shifting to future generations. “We have reached the boundaries of our system. It is no longer feasible to build anywhere in the country,” he asserted, highlighting policy challenges and the importance of stakeholder collaboration.

‘‘We have reached the boundaries of our system. It is no longer feasible to build anywhere in the country. We need to make strategic location choices.’’ – René Vrugt

Panel Discussion – Part 1

‘‘Where and How to Build in New Urban Areas?’’

The first panel, moderated by Professor Ellen van Bueren, focused on the application of WBS principles in urban areas. Key points included the rising costs of sustainable construction, the role of energy efficiency, and the need for integrated area development. Panelists like Vylon Ooms from Verbond van Verzekeraars (the Dutch Association of Insurers), and Sophie Kraaijeveld, Real Estate Sector Banker at ING stressed balancing climate adaptation with housing affordability and emphasized the importance of collective responsibility in addressing climate risks. Concerns about funding, data quality, and the challenge of shifting public perceptions were also discussed during this session.

‘‘While each stakeholder has individual responsibility, certain climate risks such as heat stress require coordinated action between different actors and shared principles.’’ – Joris Winters

The discussion concluded with a reflection on the sense of urgency in climate adaptation. Panelists acknowledged varying perspectives and emphasized that clarity depends on the decisions of the newly formed Dutch government. Audience members raised issues about infrastructure needs and the challenges of relocating residents from high-risk areas. Following this discussion, Sacha Stolp from the City of Amsterdam expressed concerns about climate-induced safety perceptions and the need for funding to implement adaptation plans effectively.

‘‘While there are many ideas and plans for climate adaptation, a significant challenge lies in the lack of available funding to put all these initiatives into action.’’ – Sacha Stolp

Panel Discussion – Part 2

‘‘Land Subsidence in the Existing Built Environment’’

The second panel discussion was moderated by Wieke Pot, Assistant Professor at Wageningen University and member of the Netherlands Scientific Climate Council. The session focused on the complex issue of land subsidence, emphasizing it as a shared responsibility requiring significant public involvement. Panelists explored who should invest in mitigation measures, with Vylon Ooms highlighting the lack of property value reflection on foundation issues and the need for public sector support. Hilbert Bouwman, Funds Manager at Stimuleringsfonds Volshuisvesting (SVn), and Thuy Do, Senior Policy Advisor at the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations of the Netherlands stressed the need to raise public awareness by providing information and data, and addressing subsidence’s multifaceted origins.

The discussion also highlighted the importance of citizen engagement, with Hanke Haagsma, Strategic Advisor at the City of Rotterdam, noting low public awareness in high-risk areas like Bloemhof and unclear expectations of government action. Martijn van Gils, a legal researcher at Utrecht University, emphasized the tension between public expectations and the legal responsibilities of municipalities and waterboards. The panel discussed government plans and potential solutions to address soil subsidence, including increased subsidies for homeowners and lowering groundwater levels to protect vulnerable homes. However, the binding legal obligations for these measures remain uncertain. The session concluded by emphasizing the need to address data gaps on land types and foundation conditions through mapping and citizen science initiatives.

Afternoon Parallel Sessions

The symposium featured four parallel sessions in the afternoon, where Red&Blue interdisciplinary research teams presented their findings. These sessions fostered valuable exchanges between science and practice. Below is a summary of key discussions:

Real Estate Climate Risk Management

Mats Lucia Bayer and Philibert Weenink, PhD Candidates involved in Red&Blue, presented their research findings on flood risk and property price effects in the Netherlands. Research findings revealed that properties in flood zones experienced an average price discount of 1.2%, with discounts increasing up to 4.4% for areas with higher risk. Findings also show that climate risk is partly reflected in the real estate market, though not uniformly across all markets and subgroups. The lack of discounts for properties in secondary and regional flood zones suggests that not all insurers have accounted for this risk in their pricing.

Law and Governance Arrangements

This session addressed two pressing questions: ‘‘What are we going to do with all the rainwater in Amsterdam?’’ and ‘‘How do stakeholders understand land subsidence in Rotterdam?’’. The Red&Blue research team presented their research findings and engaged the audience in discussions. Richard Pompoes, PhD Candidate at Wageningen University explored how different stakeholders in Rotterdam-Zuid perceive subsidence. In a follow up presentation, Frank Groothuijse, Professor of Law, Economics, and Governance at Utrecht University discussed legal principles surrounding water and soil, focusing on current governmental debates prioritizing housing development over environmental concerns. The session concluded with a presentation by Lilian Karnenbeek, Postdoctoral Researcher at Utrecht University, who discussed the legal responsibilities of public-private stakeholders while dealing with precipitation.

Climate Risk and Resilience Analysis

Maria Fonseca, PhD Candidate at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and Marco Hoogvliet, Expert in Urban Water and Soil Systems at Deltares, shared their findings, which included flood and wind-driven hazard maps. Additionally, Tony Hung, PhD Candidate at Maastricht University, presented his latest research findings, discussing the application of the Baseline Resilience Indicators for Communities (BRICs) framework, which has been utilized to assess resilience and social vulnerability throughout the Netherlands. Participants then discussed the usefulness of the products above for stakeholders, as well as potential changes that they might desire.

Technical Climate Risk Management Strategies

Focusing on flood risks in embanked and un-embanked areas, Matthijs Kok, Professor in Flood Risk, and Ties Rijcken, Postdoc Researcher at TU Delft shared their team’s research findings primarily focusing on flood exposure in un-embanked areas in Rotterdam. The findings indicated that flood exposure in 2150 could increase 4 to 8 times compared to 1996, based on the KNMI’23 projections, largely due to real estate development and the expansion of housing in these areas. Discussions revolved around the legal and financial implications of flood risks, particularly the need for adaptation measures at both the property and system levels.

Plenary Session

‘‘Towards Integrated Urban Climate Risk Management Strategies: Navigating Complexities in Dutch Area Development’’

The plenary session began with Tom Daamen, Associate Professor at TU Delft, reflecting on the complexities of managing climate risks in Dutch urban area development. He emphasized the challenges of balancing housing demand, climate risks, affordability, and insurance, with particular focus on decision-making for new developments. According to him, a key challenge is decision-making about the location of new developments, with stakeholders often at odds over how to build responsibly. Daamen highlighted the media’s role in shaping these debates and stressed the importance of integrating community input into research initiatives like Red&Blue to make knowledge more actionable.

He noted that one objective can be to connect area development with the Water and Soil Principles (WBS), exploring how WBS-informed planning can support sustainable and climate-adaptive cities. ‘‘Red&Blue aims to integrate financial considerations into the area development process to understand the mechanisms for funding long-term area developments, especially when adaptation measures for climate risks are introduced. Often, these measures add costs to the project, posing challenges for area developers who need to balance adaptation costs against the project’s revenue potential given affordability concerns. This difficulty is compounded by different market dynamics responding to climate risk, which influence business cases in area development, and financial feasibility at every stage—from land development and housing construction to long-term management’’, Daamen highlighted. He concluded that ‘‘governance integration has become increasingly essential, as public participation plays a more prominent role in planning, particularly in redevelopment projects in cities like Amsterdam where residents are actively involved.’’

The session continued by Zac Taylor, Assistant Professor at TU Delft, who underscored the complexity of the climate issues, which involves diverse risks, perspectives, and spatial scales. He called for clarity on the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders and emphasized the need for a shared understanding of the problem and mutual recognition among parties. ‘‘With an emphasis on leveraging shared insights, the Red&Blue team seeks to co-identify synergies where complementary expertise can enhance overall societal impact. This forward-looking strategy also involves refining our organisational structure, optimising time, capacity, and focus, and building new capacities, particularly through our research-practice collaborations’’, Zac stated.

The Red&Blue research team then shared lessons from urban case studies. Ted Veldkamp from the Rotterdam team stressed the importance of tailoring solutions to the needs of communities affected by risks. Maged Elsamny from the Amsterdam team discussed studies on three urban areas—existing, transformative, and future—highlighting flood risk challenges and the development of a climate damage calculation tool. From a governance perspective, Lilian van Karnenbeek reflected on financing land development and integrating climate adaptation costs into sustainable business models for area development. The session concluded with Zac Taylor inviting collaboration and dialogue, emphasizing the importance of collective efforts to address these challenges and achieve shared goals.

Closing Session

‘‘Looking Ahead to the Spatial Planning in the Netherlands’’

The closing session was led by Paul Gerretsen, lead of the Deltametropolis Association, who provided an overview of the future of Dutch spatial planning, exploring different political perspectives and thinking on the subject. He provided historical insights into efforts to address environmental damage and envision sustainable, nature-based spatial development.

Gerretsen highlighted increasing pressures on space and the need for long-term planning, despite political challenges in adopting extended time horizons. Strengthening relationships between national and regional governments was emphasized to align fragmented provincial proposals and enhance cooperation. He acknowledged a lack of clarity in current spatial planning policies due to governmental changes and limited coherence among national programs, stressing that existing plans do not match the scale of the challenges.

Gerretsen concluded with some positive news, stating that addressing the significant challenges in spatial planning and climate adaptation in the Netherlands has led to a shift toward a content-driven agenda. According to him, cooperation among ministries has been strengthening, and regional and local solutions are gaining more attention. ‘‘Provinces and municipalities are becoming more influential, recognising the need to broaden the focus beyond national strategies and foster stronger connections across all levels of government. While regional collaboration is rising, a clear and cohesive approach to integrating these efforts is still demanding,’’ Gerretsen noted.