Rijkswaterstaat

SPECIAL REPORTS

SPECIAL REPORTS

Half a century after South Africa pioneered state-funded emergency towing vessels, debate continues over whether governments or commercial operators should finance rapid maritime rescue and pollution prevention services.

By By Peter Barker · Yesterday

Emergency rescue towing: who should shoulder the cost when ships founder?

By By Peter Barker · Yesterday

VESSELS

VESSELS

Boskalis has put its new 31,000m³ trailing suction hopper dredger Seaway into commercial service, with the vessel undertaking its first project off Den Helder on a Dutch coastal-defence programme.

24th August 2026

Boskalis’ largest Dutch-built dredger enters commercial service

24th August 2026

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

For nearly six decades, the Papendrecht Bridge has been one of the most important transport links in South Holland, a province in the western Netherlands.

21st July 2026

Rebuilding the heart of the Papendrecht Bridge

21st July 2026

VESSELS

VESSELS

Three industry teams have been chosen to develop competing designs for a new generation of low-emission emergency response towing vessels (ERTVs) under a Dutch government programme aimed at protecting the North Sea’s…

2nd July 2026

Three teams enter race to build emergency towing vessels

2nd July 2026

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

Van Oord has been handed a contract for a major beach replenishment and coastal protection project in Portugal to restore and reinforce one of the country’s most prominent tourist beaches.

21st January 2026

Van Oord expands coastal replenishment portfolio

21st January 2026

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

A Dutch consortium (WaterWerk) has been finalised to carry out extensive works on two Dutch rivers under the EU’s Water Framework Directive (WFD).

17th December 2025

Dutch consortium finalised to upgrade rivers before EU 2027 deadline

17th December 2025

PORTS & HARBOURS

PORTS & HARBOURS

The loss of up to 350 containers from the MSC Zoe in 2019 has prompted the Dutch Rijkwaterstaat to implement a new Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) area to provide guidance to captains.

12th November 2025

Container spill prompts new VTS area in Netherlands

12th November 2025

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

A Dutch engineering project is to be expanded following ‘an explosion of marine life’ that has been recorded in the four years since it started.

26th August 2025

Dutch combine flood defence with marine life

26th August 2025

VESSELS

VESSELS

Rijkswaterstaat has launched the Power2Tow project, which aims to develop three emission-free Emergency Response Towing Vessels (ERTVs).

14th July 2025

The Netherlands launches green tug project

14th July 2025

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

A consortium including the Dutch water board has reported flood defence and marine biodiversity success two years after a reef scheme was installed in Rotterdam’s most important shipping lane.

22nd April 2025

Dutch hail success of two-year reef block scheme

22nd April 2025

VESSELS

VESSELS

The first Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) will be delivered to the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management executive agency (Rijkswaterstaat) in a four-year contract.

13th February 2025

First USV ordered for Dutch water board

13th February 2025

VESSELS

VESSELS

The Netherlands Rijkwaterstaat has described the unwelcome consequences following the sinking of an inland barge in the south of the country, close to the Belgium border.

22nd October 2024

Pressure cooker of decisions to deal with sunken barge

22nd October 2024

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

The new sea lock in Ijmuiden in the Netherlands is nearing completion of its crucial salt dam project, designed to mitigate ecological impacts caused by saltwater intrusion into the North Sea Canal.

3rd October 2024

Ijmuiden sea lock project nears completion

3rd October 2024

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

MARINE CONSTRUCTION

A European initiative has been launched to reduce emissions caused by dredging activities.

11th July 2024

Collaboration aims to cut dredging emissions

11th July 2024