{"id":5679,"date":"2018-07-04T11:00:07","date_gmt":"2018-07-04T11:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/?p=5679"},"modified":"2018-07-04T07:28:32","modified_gmt":"2018-07-04T07:28:32","slug":"environmental-projects-in-netherlands-and-belgium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/environmental-projects-in-netherlands-and-belgium\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmental Projects in Netherlands and Belgium"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the many things I like about living in the Netherlands is the care given to the environment. This care is for a variety of areas of the environment including protected areas, wildlife as well as pets. There are many projects throughout the country that have struck me as\u00a0echt fantastisch\u00a0<\/em>and in this post, I want to cover just three of these projects.<\/p>\n

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Photo taken by David van der Mark found in Flickr.com with license CC BY-SA 2.0<\/p><\/div>\n

Ecoduct Kikbeek<\/b><\/h3>\n

My first drive from Brussels Airport to my little town of Beek in Limburg made quite an impact. It was on this drive that I realized learning Dutch would be quite a challenge (you can read about my struggle with the sound\u00a0ui<\/em> in this post<\/a>). During this same drive, I saw my first ever\u00a0ecoduct\u00a0<\/em>or\u00a0dierenviaduct<\/em> between Genk and Maasmechelen in Belgium, and I was truly amazed! I have a profound love for animals, and making a path to keep the animals (and cars) safe seemed like a very good solution. According to Paradijs Vogels Magazine<\/a>, there are 66\u00a0ecoducten<\/em> in the Netherlands. The\u00a0ecoduct<\/em> is basically a bridge over the highway or railroad that connects the natural area from one side to the other. This allows animals to move freely without running the risk of crossing the highway keeping everyone safe.<\/p>\n

The downside to\u00a0ecoducten<\/em> is the cost. Each one costs between 2 and 8 million euros, and that is a high price for any country. There are arguments that the number of animals that use the bridge is low compared to the cost, but it seems the real problem is the lack of oversight to the benefits. This article by NRC.nl<\/a> states:<\/p>\n

Maar biologen vinden de situatie niet \u2018simpel\u2019. Zoals Hans-Peter Koelewijn, die DNA-onderzoek uitvoerde bij edelherten op de Veluwe: \u201cEcoducten kunnen werken, maar toon dat dan eens een keer goed aan. Er is geen of nauwelijks aandacht voor gerichte monitoring, alleen maar voor het aanleggen.\u201d Of ecoloog Edgar van der Grift van instituut Alterra, onderzoeker van wildviaducten: \u201cDragen de ecoducten bij aan het in stand houden van diersoorten? Dat weten we niet.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Ecoducten<\/em> are not exclusive to this area of the world. There are different types of bridges and animals passes such as a\u00a0schilpad<\/em> route under the railroad tracks in Japan, a tunnel for penguins in New Zealand, and a touwenbrug<\/em> for birds in Australia. You can read more about these tunnels and bridges in the Paradijs Vogels Magazine<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

The following video is from a year ago, but it presents why the region of Gelderland wanted two new\u00a0ecoducten\u00a0<\/em>built.<\/p>\n