The dynamics in the dunes is being restored. New replenishments can cause the dune mass to grow along with the rising sea level, thereby allowing more fresh water to be stored.
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Schiermonnikoog
Fresh Water Bubble
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Connecting to the dynamics of landscape-forming processes
The dynamics in the dunes is being restored. New replenishments can cause the dune mass to grow along with the rising sea level, thereby allowing more fresh water to be stored.
Fresh Water Bubble
Natural processes such as banking up and silting are causing the island to grow with the sea level. Dunes can bank up higher on the North Sea side, whereas the dike can become a wide zone on the Wadden Sea side. The rising of dunes and polder is increasing the storage capacity of the fresh water bubble underneath the island. Water consumption is reducing and cycles closing thanks to the remodelling of the polder and the reuse of waste water. The island offers gradients to become self-sufficient and to export regional products. The polder is big enough to provide residents and tourists with food all year round. The island offers gradients to become self-sufficient and to export regional products. The polder is big enough to provide residents and tourists with food all year round.
Four principles for a self-sufficient island
The need to grow with the sea level
The fresh water bubble provides Schiermonnikoog with drinking water and water for agriculture and nature. The volume of the bubble remains about the same because sand-drift has pretty much brought the dynamic growth of the dunes to a halt. In the polder, which is intensively used for milk production, there is a water shortage during dry summers. The polder also has little variation and a low biodiversity. The nitrogen load for the dunes is too high.
The rising sea level is pushing the fresh water bubble upwards and causing the available volume to decrease. In the polder too, the salt water is pushing the fresh water upwards, resulting in rewetting. The drainage of this excess of water is emptying the fresh water bubble underneath the dunes particularly fast. This causes drying and salinisation. Dry summers are making the problem worse. A radical change in system is going to be vital.
By allowing Schiermonnikoog to grow along with the rising sea level, it is able to adapt to the climate. When dunes can be raised again, the fresh water bubble can remain a stable size. With silt from the Wadden Sea, the polder can be raised, causing it to become more fertile and more resilient. A redesigned water system will retain surface water for longer and close cycles. Purified waste water is reused in dry periods for food production. Solar panels on existing roof surfaces provide for the island's energy requirements. In the winter, a kite is able to turn wind energy into electricity.
Village food edge
In order to provide food for tourists and residents alike, around 33 hectares of production land is required. Meat, dairy products, fish and shellfish are produced at different locations on the island.
Dorpse voedselrand
Reuse of sewage water
By relocating the sewage water purification plant to the dune side of the polder, the purified water can be used to grow food crops. A horticultural zone of 33 hectares will be located next to the village. The quantity of purified sewage water will be highest in the summer, just when the plants need it the most.
Wadden edge
The future landscape of Schiermonnikoog
Strategy for making the island self-sufficient in food and energy
About the designers
LAMA
LAMA landscape architects is founded in 2013 by Claire Laeremans en Jorryt Braaksma (both obtained their Master’s degree in landscape architecture at the Amsterdam Academy of Architecture). LAMA mainly works in the Low Countries on a wide spectrum of projects and combines research with implementation projects. In 2016 LAMA won the Prize on Public Space with its initiative ‘the Ideal Street Profile’. The bureau was selected for the Young Innovaters Award in 2017 by the Dutch Board of Government Advisors, to work on recreational landscapes in the province of Drenthe under the mentorship of State Architect Floris Alkemade. The project Openspace Perspective Niles, from LAMA and Brut won the Planning Prize 2018. At the moment the LAMA team consists of a team with expertise in landscape architecture, urban planning, architecture, ecology and hydrology.
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