The (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Hollandse IJssel Storm Surge Barrier''), (''Hollandse IJssel Barrier'') or (''Algera Barrier'') is a storm surge barrier located on the

Hollandse IJssel The Hollandse (or Hollandsche) IJssel (; "Holland IJssel", as opposed to the 'regular' or Gelderland IJssel) is a branch of the Rhine delta that flows westward from Nieuwegein on river Lek through IJsselstein, Gouda and Capelle aan den IJsse ...

, at the municipal boundary of

Capelle aan den IJssel Capelle aan den IJssel (; en, Capelle on the IJssel) is a small city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of in , and covers an area of , of which is water. It is situ ...

and Krimpen aan den IJssel, east of

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 ''"Ne ...

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The construction of the works comprised the first project of the

Delta Works The Delta Works ( nl, Deltawerken) is a series of construction projects in the southwest of the Netherlands to protect a large area of land around the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta from the sea. Constructed between 1954 and 1997, the works con ...

, undertaken in response to the disastrous effects of the North Sea flood of 1953. Prior to 1954, the spelling was used in the official name. The Hollandse IJssel is a low-lying river, and during the 1953 flood, the river

dikes Dyke (UK) or dike (US) may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), a subvertical sheet-like intrusion of magma or sediment * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess of moral justice * Dikes ...

were exposed to dangerously high water levels, placing around 1.5 million people in the

Randstad The Randstad (; "Rim" or "Edge" City) is a roughly crescent-shaped conurbation in the central-western Netherlands, consisting primarily of the four largest Dutch cities (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht); their suburbs, and many tow ...

at risk from

flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrolog ...

. A dike at

Ouderkerk aan den IJssel Ouderkerk aan den IJssel (; en, Ouderkerk upon IJssel) is a village in the municipality of Krimpenerwaard, in the province of South Holland, the Netherlands. It is situated along the river Hollandse IJssel and has over 4000 inhabitants. Ouder ...

failed, and a dike in

Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel (; population: 22,344 in 2004) is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Since 2010 it is part of the new municipality of Zuidplas. It is situated along the Holl ...

was almost breached, being sealed only after the local

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

ordered sailor Arie Evegroen to navigate his

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

into the hole which had been formed in it. The body in charge of the Delta Works, the , therefore prioritised the construction of a storm surge barrier, and in January 1954, less than a year after the flood, dredging works were undertaken to start the project. On May 6, 1958, the first sluice gate was lowered as a test, with the storm surge barrier made operational on 22 October 1958. The barrier is often referred to colloquially as the , but has never been officially known by that name. The name arises as the adjacent bridge carrying the N210 road is officially named the (Algera Bridge), after Jacob Algera, who resigned as Minister of Transport and Water Management for health reasons on 10 October 1958, only twelve days before the opening of the project. The architect was J.A.G. van der Steur Jr., and the project was designed by the department of

Rijkswaterstaat Rijkswaterstaat, founded in 1798 as the ''Bureau voor den Waterstaat'' and formerly translated to Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management, is a Directorate-General of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management of the Net ...

, with H.G. Kroon as construction engineer. The barrier is classified as a Rijksmonument. The four towers of the barrier are lit to act as

aids to navigation Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ma ...

, with blue lighting indicating an open barrier and red lighting indicating that the barrier is closed.

Design and planning

As the Hollandse IJssel is an important

shipping route A sea lane, sea road or shipping lane is a regularly used navigable route for large water vessels (ships) on wide waterways such as oceans and large lakes, and is preferably safe, direct and economic. During the Age of Sail, they were determined ...

, the option of permanently closing the river with a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

was not taken forward. However, the potential advantages of a closure included increased supply security of

drinking water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, a ...

for large parts of South Holland, by reducing the inflow of

seawater Seawater, or salt water, is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% (35 g/L, 35 ppt, 600 mM). This means that every kilogram (roughly one liter by volume) of seawater has appr ...

into the

polders A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed # Flood plains ...

. A storm surge barrier with two movable sluice gates, suspended between concrete towers, was chosen as the solution. The sluices are only closed at periods of very high water, with shipping able to sail underneath the raised gates at other times. The , a 23.9 metre wide, 139 metre long

control lock A control lock, guard lock or stop lock differs from a normal canal lock in that its primary purpose is controlling variances in water level rather than raising or lowering vessels. A control lock may also be known as a tide lock where it is used t ...

located north-west of the barrier, permits ships up to CEMT Class Va to navigate beyond the barrier at times of closure. A

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

is located within the structure, having a closed clearance height of 7.11 metres. The project was designed such that the two gates could be operated independently, minimising the risks from failure and permitting regular

maintenance Maintenance may refer to: Biological science * Maintenance of an organism * Maintenance respiration Non-technical maintenance * Alimony, also called ''maintenance'' in British English * Champerty and maintenance, two related legal doct ...

. Due to budgetary constraints, the second sluice gate did not come into operation until 1976, by which time the barrier had operated with a single sluice gate for almost 18 years. The gates were designed for different load cases and water levels on both sides of the barrier, as shown in the table below.

Construction and operation

The towers are 45 metres high, and the barrier gates are 12 metres high, 80 metres in width, and 135 metres apart. The total weight of each gate is 480 tonnes. Construction of the foundations involved steel sheet piles being installed in pairs, with ground anchors welded to the bottom of the piles to transfer loads to the foundation concrete. The towers are constructed of reinforced concrete with

precast concrete Precast concrete is a construction product produced by casting concrete in a reusable mold or "form" which is then cured in a controlled environment, transported to the construction site and maneuvered into place; examples include precast bea ...

slabs forming two floors at the top of each structure, one containing the cable wheels for the sluice

counterweight A counterweight is a weight that, by applying an opposite force, provides balance and stability of a mechanical system. The purpose of a counterweight is to make lifting the load faster and more efficient, which saves energy and causes less wea ...

, and the other housing the mechanical parts of the lifting mechanism. Eight

galvanised Galvanization or galvanizing ( also spelled galvanisation or galvanising) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip galvanizing, in which the parts are submerged ...

wire rope Steel wire rope (right hand lang lay) Wire rope is several strands of metal wire twisted into a helix forming a composite ''rope'', in a pattern known as ''laid rope''. Larger diameter wire rope consists of multiple strands of such laid rope in a ...

lifting and lowering cables with steel cores were used, guided over two 4.8 metre diameter cable wheels at the top of each tower, mounted on a forged steel axle with two self-aligning spherical roller bearings. The mechanism allowed the gates to be moved at a rate between 2 and 3 centimetres per second. The gates were fabricated and assembled in

Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a city and municipality in the Western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland. It is the province's fifth-largest city after R ...

before being transported to site on

barges Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

, via Rotterdam, for installation. The total construction cost of the Hollandse IJssel Storm Surge Barrier amounted to approximately forty million

guilders Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' "gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman Emp ...

. One barrier is closed at an anticipated water level of 2.25 metres above

Amsterdam Ordnance Datum Amsterdam Ordnance Datum or ' (NAP) is a vertical datum in use in large parts of Western Europe. Originally created for use in the Netherlands, its height was used by Prussia in 1879 for defining ', and in 1955 by other European countries. In the ...

(NAP). Closure of the barrier takes between 20 and 60 minutes. The barrier is closed four to five times per year on average, and is also closed once per month on a test basis during the storm season between October and April.

The Algera Bridge

The Algera Bridge, the first major fixed cross-river connection between Krimpenerwaard and the mainland of South Holland, consists of a fixed bridge over the river and a bascule bridge over the lock. The fixed bridge is supported on two piers, one of which forms the transition to a viaduct on the east side, with the other forming a support for the bascule bridge. West of the bridge, there is an

underpass A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube constr ...

designed to allow north–south traffic to pass uninterrupted.

The effects of the construction of the Maeslantkering

The construction of the Maeslant barrier in 1997 resulted in a higher factor of safety from flooding for the areas behind it, including areas protected by the Hollandse IJsselkering. The Maeslant barrier is designed for very extreme floods (when the water level is predicted to be 3 metres or more above NAP in Rotterdam). On average, this occurs once every 10 years. When the Maeslant barrier is closed, the entrance to the old port of Rotterdam at is closed to all shipping for at least 24 hours. The dikes behind the Hollandse IJsselkering can only cope with water levels up to 2.25 metres above NAP, and therefore it is closed more often than the Maeslant barrier - around 3 to 4 times per year. Although it would be technically possible to abandon the Hollandse IJsselkering and close the Maeslantkering more frequently, the undesirable economic effects arising from the associated shipping disruption mean that the Hollandse IJsselkering remains in operation. In addition, the operation to close the Maeslant barrier takes much longer than the Hollandse IJsselkering, which can be completely closed in around 4 hours. Closure of the Maeslantkering is therefore reserved only for extreme high water levels and the Hollandse IJsselkering remains essential to Rijkswaterstaat's overall flood management strategy.

Media

File:Overzicht Algerabrug, onderdeel van de Stormvloedkering, gezien vanaf de Ketensedijk - Krimpen aan den IJssel - 20413387 - RCE.jpg, The Stormvloedkering Hollandse IJssel File:Doorvaarthoogte van de Algerabrug (01).jpg, Water level gauge at the Algera Bridge File:Gesloten stormvloedkering Hollandse IJssel..jpg, The towers lit in red to show that the barrier is closed File:1-Stormvloedkering Hollandse IJssel-Algerabrug--DSC 0179.jpg, The towers lit in blue, indicating that the barrier is open File:Bouw van de stormvloedkering in Hollandse IJssel-525774.ogv, Report on the works by

Polygoon (newsreel) The Dutch Polygoon-Profilti was a cinema newsreel company in the Netherlands from 1919 to 1987. It started with weekly news items in the Dutch movie theaters and lasted until 1987 when it finally surrendered to television news shows. The company ...

(18 December 1957)

References

External links

*
Hollandse IJssel Storm Surge Barrier details at the Watersnoodmuseum Knowledge Centre
Information on the Hollandse IJssel storm surge barrier from the official

Watersnoodmuseum The Watersnoodmuseum or Flood Museum in Ouwerkerk, Netherlands is the "National Knowledge and Remembrance Centre for the Floods of 1953" and offers an in-depth picture of the events during and after the flood of 1 February 1953. The museum was o ...

website
Deltawerk Hollandse IJsselkering
Official information page about the barrier on the

website {{Authority control Dams in South Holland Dams completed in 1958 Delta Works