Climate change and human activity in flood-prone delta’s and coastlines, make finding cost-effective flood safety measures an increasingly pressing issue. Natural ecosystems may attenuate wind and waves, reduce storm surges and prevent coastal erosion. 

To what extent can the nature functions of coastal and intertidal ecosystems be integrated with their flood defense functions? How to create such ecosystems precisely where needed? How do these dynamic ecosystems develop over time and under extreme conditions? And how to manage these protective systems effectively? These questions apply both to coastal vegetation as well tidal flats with benthic communities. Our studies integrate different scales; combining both the local-scale (within an ecosystem) and the landscape-scale (the connectivity between ecosystems and ecosystem compartments).

Expertise

(Re)creating coastal ecosystems is complex. We provide insight in the physical and biological mechanisms that hamper ecosystem establishment, and develop methods to create 'windows of opportunity' to overcome establishment thresholds. The Wadden & Delta Centre for ecosystem-restoration and coastal protection, offers in depth ecological understanding, integrated with physical processes, as needed for developing sustainable coastal defence and successful ecosystem restoration. We offer expert teams, unique equipment, and research technology. We often contribute to International PhD courses on Nature Based Flood Defense as well as on Ecosystem Restoration.

Within ecosystem restoration projects, we closely collaborate with engineers from TU Delft and University of Twente, scientists from Utrecht University, Radboud University Nijmegen, Groningen University and the University of Applied Sciences Vlissingen. Of course, we also work with semi-commercial research institutes like Deltares and Wageningen Marine Research. Moreover, we collaborate with consultancy companies like e.g. Bureau Waardenburg. 

Contact and questions

Are you interested in the (experimental)facillities or expertise of specifically the Delta or have questions about coastal restoration or coastal protection, please use the Wadden & Delta Centre contact form (preferred) and you will get a response as soon as possible. In very urgent matters you can contact us by phone.