Work to be done

Stichting RIONED, the national knowledge center for urban water management, recently published the Monitor municipal water tasks 2024. For this monitor, we surveyed all municipalities in the Netherlands on various aspects of urban water management. This gives us an up-to-date insight into the state of urban water management in our country. And what emerges? There is work to be done!

The purpose of the monitor is to identify where the major challenges lie and where we as a sector need to get moving. The previous monitor was in 2016. And given the large number of tasks that this monitor reveals, we decided to implement a monitor every four years. As many as 90% of municipalities completed our current questionnaire. Among the municipalities that did not participate, the answer was invariably: a shortage of people. Thanks to the monitor, we now also have a picture of how big the problem is. On average, there is a shortage of over 25%. This is partly filled by hiring, but that does not solve the problem. 

The monitor shows that smaller municipalities in particular are having difficulty filling vacancies. That's why we recommend joining hands. And there are already some examples of this, with municipalities working together with the sector in the region, giving the sector the opportunity to grow along with the task. Such cooperation on a regional level really needs to get off the ground, otherwise we're not going to get the tasks we're facing done. Because it is a fact that we have a lot of work ahead of us. A lot of sewers in the Netherlands were laid in the 1960s and 1970s and will need to be replaced in the coming years. 

But that replacement task is not all; there is much more work to be done. All facilities, both old and new, must be maintained and managed. We have a major new construction task, and measures are needed in many places as the changing climate presents us with new challenges. The work of municipalities is becoming more and more integrated, more and more interesting, and urban water management is increasingly coming to the surface. After all, wadis and greenery are also part of the municipal water system, and roads can also store water when necessary. This makes the work more and more visible and shows that there are many nice aspects to all these tasks.

Our call to municipalities is: Show how important the tasks within urban water management are. Try to motivate young potential employees. At the municipality, they can contribute to society, the climate and their own environment. They can do work that matters.

Because working in the water sector means working on intriguing issues and beautiful puzzles. How do you ensure that the right water gets to the right place and that we all enjoy it? Working with water is working for the future: good public health, a clean environment and dry homes.

My advice to the industry is that clients and contractors should put much more effort into working together. We really need each other. Much has already been achieved, but there is still much more to do. So work to be done, because time is running out. The next few years are crucial to stay on top of the growing tasks. Let's put our shoulders to the wheel, so that the Netherlands remains liveable and water-safe. In four years we will take stock again.

The Pen - Hilde Niezen – Director of the RIONED Foundation