For the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the international knowledge network I-STORM convened on Tuesday, May 10th. The meeting took place at the Maeslantkering, which was opened exactly 25 years ago by Queen Beatrix, marking the completion of the Delta Works. On behalf of Delta Pi, our colleague Melchert Rijks the honor of attending this special meeting.
A more fitting location is hard to imagine for a network that aims to share, expand, and improve knowledge about the deployment, maintenance, and management of storm surge barriers. The program's content was tailored to this.
The event began with a tour of the barriers, covering the operational deployment of the Oosterscheldekering, Ramspolkering, Hollandsche IJsselkering, Haringvliet Locks, Maeslant Barriers, and Hartel Barriers. This was accompanied by beautiful and spectacular images of the barriers during storms Dudley, Eunice, and Franklin earlier this year.
As an international network, knowledge exchange with foreign institutions is also a high priority. For example, the meeting covered a visit by Rijkswaterstaat (the Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management) to New Orleans. Several flood defenses and pumping stations have been constructed there to protect the city from flooding. Rijkswaterstaat and the local Flood Protection Authorities regularly exchange experiences to continuously improve this protection.
The final part of the program was the presentation by Het Opleidingshuis (The Training House). Het Opleidingshuis offers training and knowledge sharing on various aspects of storm surge barriers.
It was a very successful gathering and we look forward to the next I-STORM meeting.
