Environmental risks identified and eliminated in a timely manner

The reinforcement of the Waal dike between Wolferen and Sprok extends over a stretch of about thirteen kilometers. To ensure that construction consortium De Betuwse Waard does not run into unexpected environmental risks during implementation, Diseo mapped out and eliminated as many risks as possible in the preparatory phase. It reduces the chance of stagnation during execution. 

Diseo is no stranger to the combiners in De Betuwse Waard. "We have already carried out a previous dike reinforcement project and a Room for the River project together," says Rudo Koster, co-owner of the environmental engineering soil consulting and research firm. "The moment this work came on the market, we were asked to identify opportunities and risks. That is, opportunities regarding the reuse of soil streams within the work and risks when it comes to contaminants or just restrictions of reuse. The risks in particular can have quite an impact on planning. That's why it's important to tackle that well in advance of execution."

Tangents

Mapping is done with extreme care. "We request old surveys and study historical maps to make a prediction of where potential contaminants are located," Koster explains. "Then we go into the field to approach the environmental risks in much more detail: what is the quality we find and what can we do with it? The outcome of the drilling may mean that we need to map contaminants in more detail. In that respect, our work clearly overlaps with that of archaeological and unexploded ordnance investigations. We are therefore familiar with these areas of expertise and coordinate our work in such a way that the interfaces are optimally exploited."

Standby

On Wolferen-Sprok, Diseo encountered contamination at several ramps and exits. "Because these risks were identified, contained and remediated at an early stage, this does not lead to delays for the construction consortium during execution," says Didi de Jong, Diseo's project manager. "During execution, by the way, we are always on standby. We take care of the batch inspection of soil streams leaving the project and assist the combination with any unexpected issues. Should a new 'case' arise, we are quickly on site. Incidentally, this will hardly disrupt the schedule, because after all, the major disruptions have already been tackled in the preparatory phase."

Different competent authorities

Managing environmental risks in such large-scale projects means knowing the rules of the game perfectly, according to Koster. "In addition to providing concrete advice to the combination, we also coordinate with the competent authorities, as there are several on Wolferen-Sprok. We identify bottlenecks, are aware in our specialist field of all laws and regulations, NEN standards and protocols, and translate that into studies that fit the work the contractor is going to do outside. In this way, the risks are safeguarded and construction combination De Betuwse Waard is prevented from encountering unexpected environmental risks during execution."