Botlek

Satellite_image_of_the_Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt_delta.html" ;"title="image.html" ;"title="Satellite Satellite_image_of_the_Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt_delta">Rhine–Meuse_delta_showing_the_Botlek_(r)..html" ;"title="image">Satellite image of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta">Rhine–Meuse delta showing the Botlek (r).">image">Satellite image of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta">Rhine–Meuse delta showing the Botlek (r). The Botlek originally was the name of a stretch of the

Nieuwe Maas The Nieuwe Maas (; "New Meuse") is a distributary of the Rhine River, and a former distributary of the Meuse (river), Maas River, in the Netherlands, Dutch Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland. It runs from the confluence of th ...

river, part of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, Rhine–Meuse delta near the Netherlands, Dutch cities of Vlaardingen and Spijkenisse in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of

South Holland South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.7 million as of October 2021 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely ...

. Specifically, it was the name of the

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

that separated the island of

Rozenburg Rozenburg () is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of 13,173 in 2004, and covers an area of 6.50 km² (of which 1.99 km² water). It was the s ...

from the

sand bar In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. It o ...

of Welplaat. The strait itself was merely the continuation of the

, and the stretch of the river south of Rozenburg continued to be called

until the confluence with

Het Scheur Het Scheur (; Dutch for "The Rip") is a branch of the Rhine-Meuse delta in South Holland, Netherlands, that flows west from the confluence of the Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas branches past the towns of Rozenburg and Maassluis. It continues as th ...

formed the Brielse Maas

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

(now the

Brielse Meer The Brielse Meer ("Lake Den Briel") is a long, narrow lake between the Dutch estuary islands of Voorne and Rozenburg in the province of South Holland. The lake takes its name from Den Briel, a town on its shore. It was formerly a branch of the ...

). Major

waterway A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary b ...

regulation works were carried out in the Netherlands in the 19th and 20th centuries to improve water management and stop the delta from silting up; the Botlek was dammed off at its southern end (connecting Rozenburg and Welplaat) and remodelled into one of the largest of the

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

seaports (see also

Europoort Europoort (, en, Eurogate, also "Europort") is an area of the Port of Rotterdam and the adjoining industrial area in the Netherlands. Being situated at Southside of the mouth of the rivers Rhine and Meuse with the hinterland consisting of the ...

). {{coord, 51, 52, 59, N, 4, 17, 39, E, region:NL_type:waterbody_source:kolossus-nlwiki, display=title Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta Water transport in the Netherlands