Summer drought, as well as floods and a rise in sea levels are among the effects of climate change that will impact the Netherlands most, both socially and financially, the government’s environmental assessment agency PBL said in a report out on Tuesday.

The report said the consequences of climate change in other countries will also affect the Dutch economy and that the situation calls for “urgent” action.

Although gradual changes can be predicted with some certainty, sudden extreme events are more difficult to factor in, particularly because they take place decades earlier than expected, head researcher Frank van Gaalen told broadcaster NOS.

In July 2019, the 40° temperature barrier was broken for the first time in the Netherlands. Torrential rains, which flooded parts of Limburg in 2021, also came as a surprise, and caused about €500 million worth of damage.

“We know extreme events will happen but not exactly when and where. So we need to be prepared, for instance by creating shady parks in urban areas. We also need to make people aware of what is coming,” Van Gaalen said.

The PBL report identified three climate trends for the Netherlands. The country will become warmer, dryer and wette and each of the trends comes with its own financial and social cost. Some 8 million people in the Netherlands are in areas at risk of floods. Flooding also threatens infrastructure, and increasing temperatures adversely affect health, with costs already estimated at €1 billion.

The most pressing problem to face the Netherlands is drought, Van Gaalen said. It affects agriculture, nature and water quality and adapting to the dry conditions is nearing its limits.

“Dry periods are becoming more frequent and last longer and at the same time the demand for water is growing. That means that more areas will be faced with a lack of water for irrigation or even drinking water, Choices will have to be made,” he said.

Combined with existing problems and the effects of manure on the soil, climate change will make nature in the Netherlands more vulnerable than ever, Van Gaalen said.

Archaeological sites

He also said more must be done to safeguard archeological sites containing artefacts which depend on a wet soil and which will be lost if groundwater levels fall.

To help head off the worst of the effects, climate risks should determine where nature, agriculture and urban development should take place, he said.

More long-term planning is also needed to make sure the country can adapt to sea level rise, he said, adding that only a comprehensive approach will go towards making the country climate-proof.

“But climate-adaptation will not solve all problems. We will still have do our best to limit extremes by lowering greenhouse gas emissions,” he said.