Water board bills will total €4.2 billion this year, an increase of 8% on 2024, according to national statistics agency CBS.

Water board bills are based on the value of the property and depend on whether the household consists of a single person or more.

The Netherlands is divided into 21 water boards, which are responsible for purifying waste water and protecting the country against flooding through the network of dykes and canals.

The most expensive place to live this year is Wetterskip Fryslân, where a family who own their home will pay €679 in water board fees. By contrast, people covered by the De Dommel water board in Noord-Brabant will pay around €474, the CBS said.

The biggest increase in water rates over the past five years is down to the Waterschap Amstel, Gooi en Vecht, which covers much of Amsterdam. Households there are paying 78% more than five years ago. Nationwide, water board bills are up 41% on 2021.

Water boards say they expect the increases to continue. “Our job is increasing in scale, mainly due to climate change,” water board association chief Vincent Lokin told broadcaster NOS. “We have to cope with more extreme weather, such as high rainfall and longer periods of drought.”

Purifying waste water is also becoming more costly because of the increase in pollutants that need to be removed. For example, traces of medicine have risen due to the ageing population, Lokin said.