Room for the River

The Room for the River programme has made the Dutch river landscape fit for the demands of the changing climate. The floodplains are not only safer, but under the 'spatial quality' objective they have also been made more attractive. More than thirty projects were completed within a period of just a few years.

The enormous operation that was Room for the River has now been recorded in a richly illustrated book: 'Room for the River - Safe and attractive landscapes'. The three Government Advisors on Landscape involved in the programme, Dirk Sijmons, Yttje Feddes and Eric Luiten, explain why the operation has been so successful and was completed on time and within budget.

In an extensive introduction, Fred Feddes describes how the Dutch water management community and the Dutch public came to the point where they were ready to embrace this unique approach, which unites engineering, architecture and nature. Photographer and landscape architect Jeroen Bosch has recorded all the locations in photographs that perfectly capture the quality of the designs.

With contributions by Jan van der Grift, Mark Hendriks, René Siemens, Marc Nolden, Martine Bakker and Michael van Buuren.