| Lauwersmeer | |
|---|---|
| Satellite image | |
| Location | Groningen, Friesland |
| Lake type | artificial lake |
| Primary inflows | Lauwers River |
| Primary outflows | Wadden Sea |
| Basin countries | Netherlands |
| Settlements | Marnewaard |
Lauwersmeer is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 1969-05-23, when the dike between the bay called "Lauwers Sea" and the Wadden Sea was closed.
On the eastern shores of the Lauwersmeer is the Marnewaard, an exercise area of the Royal Netherlands Army. The central and eastern parts of the lake became Lauwersmeer National Park, a national park, on 2003-11-12.
Contents |
The Lauwers Sea (in Dutch: Lauwerszee) was formed by a flood in 1280[1], and named after the river Lauwers, which flows along the border between the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. During the flood the mouth of the Lauwers river disappeared, and its tributaries the Reitdiep, the Dokkumerdiep, and the Ee flowed directly into the new bay. Many plans were made after this disaster to shut it off from the sea but none were ever put into effect. However, parts of it were empoldered piecemeal, slowly reducing it from a large two-forked estuary to the nearly-square inlet seen on recent maps.
The first serious plans for draining the Lauwers Sea are from 1849. In the 1930s a commission came with several plans but all ended up in the drawer and were never accomplished. The flood disaster of 1953 and the Christmas flood of 1954[2] made clear that something had to be done. In 1958 the New Delta Law[3] ordered a reinforcement of the dikes in the north of the Netherlands. At the Lauwers Sea there were two options, to reinforce the existing dikes around the Lauwers Sea (32 km of dikes) or to make a dam of 13 km and separation of the Lauwers Sea and the Wadden Sea. After a study the 13 km dike plan was more expensive than the 32 km plan and the government decided to choose for the cheapest option.
The people living in the area came into resistance and a committee was formed (actiecomité "Lauwerszee"). They received 135.000 signatures[4] of people that wanted to close the Lauwers Sea. In Leeuwarden was a big gathering to show the government that they didn't agree with their decision. At 10 June 1960 Kabinet-De Quay decided to enclose the Lauwers Sea[5] on behold of the sharing of cost with the Provinces Groningen and Friesland. Also the Provinces needed to do the repairing if needed after finishing the dike. The provinces agreed and the planmaking started.
The 13 kilometers (8.1 mi) long dike has a sluices and a canal lock. A new harbour called Lauwersoog was built part-way along the dike. Final enclosure and separation from the Wadden Sea took place on 25 May 1969[6][7]; since then it has been called Lauwersmeer.
New flora and fauna appeared as the Lauwerszee gradually became a freshwater lake, and to protect this new and young nature area, it was decided (12 November 2003) to designate the Lauwersmeer as a national park[8]. The ferry to Schiermonnikoog that had previously departed from Oostmahorn now leaves from Lauwersoog.
There is a lack of agreement about whether to spell the name as "Lauwersee" or "Lauwerszee". Some older maps show it as "Lauwerzee".
History of the Lauwersmeer1, www.lauwersmeer.org (in dutch)
History of the Lauwersmeer2, www.zoutkamp.net (in dutch)
History of the Lauwersmeer3, www.natuurinformatie.nl (in dutch)