I caught my first glimpse of the North Sea shortly after the border, and although it was still early, several Dutch were already out in the cold breeze staring at the sea. I cycled toward Zeeland, much of which is below sea level, separated from the North Sea waters by a line of protective dikes. The largest barrier that the Dutch have built against the North Sea is the Delta Project, which is a series of enormous concrete and metal structures and artificial islands running for about 40 or 50 kilometers along the outer perimeter of Zeeland. This is a photo of one tiny section of the structure, which has hydraulic pistons that can raise and lower a series of gigantic metal barriers in order to regulate the flow of the sea into the inland estuaries. The bicycle highway that I was travelling on actually ran on top of the structure. I was impressed by this feat of Dutch engineering. (9/08/04)

Description

:

Zeeland Delta Project