Rijkswaterstaat
Encyclopedia
Rijkswaterstaat, founded in 1798 as the Bureau voor den Waterstaat, is part of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment
, the former Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management. Its role is the practical execution of the public works and water management, including the construction and maintenance of waterways and roads, and -importantly- flood protection and prevention . The agency was also involved in the construction of big railway projects such as the Betuweroute
and the HSL-Zuid
.
The mission of the organisation is: "Rijkswaterstaat is de rijksdienst die werkt aan droge voeten, schoon en voldoende water én aan de vlotte en veilige doorstroming van het verkeer" (Rijkswaterstaat is the national agency that provides dry feet, clean and sufficient water and a quick and safe flow of traffic). The agency is divided in 10 regional, 6 specialist services and 2 special services.
The director-general
(DG) of Rijkswaterstaat is as of 1 February 2010 mr. ing. Jan Hendrik Dronkers.
As of January 1, 2006, Rijkswaterstaat is a (executive) agentschap (agency).
The following regional services exist:
These last two Projectdirecties were ended in 2010 as the projects are concluded.
Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment (Netherlands)
The Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment is a Dutch ministry created in 2010 by the Rutte Cabinet, and is a merger of the former Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management and Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment. The minister is Melanie Schultz van...
, the former Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management. Its role is the practical execution of the public works and water management, including the construction and maintenance of waterways and roads, and -importantly- flood protection and prevention . The agency was also involved in the construction of big railway projects such as the Betuweroute
Betuweroute
The Betuweroute is a double track freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany. Betuweroute is the official name, after the Betuwe area through which it passes, but the line is popularly referred to as Betuwelijn, after an older track in the same region. The Germans have named their part the...
and the HSL-Zuid
HSL-Zuid
HSL-Zuid , is a 125 km-long high-speed railway line in the Netherlands to the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda. Together with the Belgian HSL 4 it forms the Schiphol–Antwerp high-speed railway...
.
The mission of the organisation is: "Rijkswaterstaat is de rijksdienst die werkt aan droge voeten, schoon en voldoende water én aan de vlotte en veilige doorstroming van het verkeer" (Rijkswaterstaat is the national agency that provides dry feet, clean and sufficient water and a quick and safe flow of traffic). The agency is divided in 10 regional, 6 specialist services and 2 special services.
The director-general
Director-general
The term director-general is a title given the highest executive officer within a governmental, statutory, NGO, third sector or not-for-profit institution.-European Union:...
(DG) of Rijkswaterstaat is as of 1 February 2010 mr. ing. Jan Hendrik Dronkers.
As of January 1, 2006, Rijkswaterstaat is a (executive) agentschap (agency).
Regional services
Rijkswaterstaat is divided in regional services, formerly known as directies. Every regional service is managed by a hoofdingenieur-directeur (HID). The regions are divided in local water- en wegendistricten (water and road districts), formerly known as dienstkringen. In the past, every province had its own regional organisation, but the directies Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe are merged, forming the service Noord-Nederland; and the directies Overijssel and Gelderland are merged to form the service Oost-Nederland.The following regional services exist:
- RWS Noord-Nederland (located in Leeuwarden)
- RWS Noord-Holland (located in HaarlemHaarlemHaarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
) - RWS IJsselmeergebied (located in LelystadLelystadLelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...
) - RWS Oost-Nederland (located in ArnhemArnhemArnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...
) - RWS Utrecht (located in UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
) - RWS Zuid-Holland (located in RotterdamRotterdamRotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
) - RWS Zeeland (located in MiddelburgMiddelburgMiddelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
) - RWS Noord-Brabant (located in 's-Hertogenbosch)
- RWS Limburg (located in MaastrichtMaastrichtMaastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...
) - RWS Noordzee (located in RijswijkRijswijkRijswijk is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It is a suburb of The Hague and covers an area of 14.48 km² ....
)
Specialist Services
- Data-ICT-dienst, Service for Data and IT (located in DelftDelftDelft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
) - Dienst Verkeer en Scheepvaart, Service for Traffic and Ship Transport (located in DelftDelftDelft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
) - Dienst Infrastructuur, Service for Infrastructure (located in UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
) - Waterdienst Water Service (located in LelystadLelystadLelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...
) - Corporate Dienst, Corporate Service (located in UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
)
Projectdirecties (Special Services)
- Ruimte voor de Rivier, Room for the River (located in UtrechtUtrecht (city)Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
) - Projectdirectie Maaswerken, Tomorrow's Meuse (located in MaastrichtMaastrichtMaastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...
and Roermond) - Projectdirectie HSL-ZuidHSL-ZuidHSL-Zuid , is a 125 km-long high-speed railway line in the Netherlands to the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda. Together with the Belgian HSL 4 it forms the Schiphol–Antwerp high-speed railway...
, High Speed Line South (located in ZoetermeerZoetermeerZoetermeer is a city in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 37.06 km² . A small village until the late 1960s, it had 6,392 inhabitants in 1950...
)
These last two Projectdirecties were ended in 2010 as the projects are concluded.
Former (specialist) services
- Waterstaatskerken
- Deltadienst
- Rijksdienst voor de IJsselmeerpolders, National Institute for polderPolderA polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
s in the IJsselmeerIJsselmeerIJsselmeer is a shallow artificial lake of 1100 km² in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland, with an average depth of 5 to 6 m. The IJsselmeer is the largest lake in Western Europe.... - Rijksinstituut voor Kust en Zee, National Institute for the Coast and Sea (located in Den Haag)
- Rijksinstituut voor Integraal Zoetwaterbeheer en Afvalwaterbehandeling, National Institute for integral Fresh Water management and Waste Treatment (located in LelystadLelystadLelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...
) - Dienst voor Weg en Waterbouwkunde, Service for Road- and Waterarchitecture (located in DelftDelftDelft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
) - Adviesdienst Verkeer en Vervoer, Advisory service Traffic and Transport (located in DelftDelftDelft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
)