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A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as
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, ...
. The three types of polder are: # Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed #
Flood plains A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
separated from the sea or river by a dike # Marshes separated from the surrounding water by a dike and subsequently drained; these are also known as '' koogs'', especially in Germany The ground level in drained marshes subsides over time. All polders will eventually be below the surrounding water level some or all of the time. Water enters the low-lying polder through
infiltration Infiltration may refer to: Science, medicine, and engineering *Infiltration (hydrology), downward movement of water into soil *Infiltration (HVAC), a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning term for air leakage into buildings *Infiltration (me ...
and water pressure of groundwater, or rainfall, or transport of water by rivers and canals. This usually means that the polder has an excess of water, which is pumped out or drained by opening
sluice Sluice ( ) is a word for a channel controlled at its head by a movable gate which is called a sluice gate. A sluice gate is traditionally a wood or metal barrier sliding in grooves that are set in the sides of the waterway and can be considered ...
s at
low tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables can ...
. Care must be taken not to set the internal water level too low. Polder land made up of peat (former marshland) will sink in relation to its previous level, because of peat decomposing when exposed to oxygen from the air. Polders are at risk from flooding at all times, and care must be taken to protect the surrounding dikes. Dikes are typically built with locally available materials, and each material has its own risks: sand is prone to collapse owing to saturation by water; dry peat is lighter than water and potentially unable to retain water in very dry seasons. Some animals dig tunnels in the barrier, allowing water to infiltrate the structure; the
muskrat The muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over a wide range of climates and habitat ...
is known for this activity and hunted in certain European countries because of it. Polders are most commonly, though not exclusively, found in river deltas, former fenlands, and coastal areas. Flooding of polders has also been used as a military tactic in the past. One example is the flooding of the polders along the
Yser The Yser ( , ; nl, IJzer ) is a river that rises in French Flanders (the north of France), enters the Belgian province of West Flanders and flows through the '' Ganzepoot'' and into the North Sea at the town of Nieuwpoort. The source of the Ys ...
River during World War I. Opening the sluices at high tide and closing them at low tide turned the polders into an inaccessible swamp, which allowed the Allied armies to stop the German army. Netherlands has a large area of polders: as much as 20% of the land area has at some point in the past been reclaimed from the sea, thus contributing to the development of the country.
IJsselmeer The IJsselmeer (; fy, Iselmar, nds-nl, Iesselmeer), also known as Lake IJssel in English, is a closed off inland bay in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland. It covers an area of with an a ...
is the most famous polder project of the Netherlands. Some other countries which have polders are Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. Some examples of Dutch polder projects are Beemster, Schermer, Flevopolder and
Noordoostpolder Noordoostpolder (; en, "North-East Polder") is a polder and municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called '' Urker Land''. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noord ...
.


Etymology

The Dutch word ''polder'' derives successively from Middle Dutch ''polre'', from Old Dutch ''polra'', and ultimately from ''pol-'', a piece of land elevated above its surroundings, with the
augmentative An augmentative (abbreviated ) is a morphological form of a word which expresses greater intensity, often in size but also in other attributes. It is the opposite of a diminutive. Overaugmenting something often makes it grotesque and so in so ...
suffix ''-er'' and epenthetical '' -d-''. The word has been adopted in thirty-six languages.


Netherlands

The Netherlands is frequently associated with polders, as its engineers became noted for developing techniques to drain wetlands and make them usable for agriculture and other development. This is illustrated by the saying "God created the world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands". The Dutch have a long history of reclamation of marshes and fenland, resulting in some 3,000 ''polders'' nationwide. By 1961, about half of the country's land, , was reclaimed from the sea. About half the total surface area of ''polders'' in north-west Europe is in the Netherlands. The first embankments in Europe were constructed in Roman times. The first polders were constructed in the 11th century. The oldest extant polder is the Achtermeer polder, from 1533. As a result of flooding disasters, water boards called ''waterschap'' (when situated more inland) or ''hoogheemraadschap'' (near the sea, mainly used in the Holland region) were set up to maintain the integrity of the water defences around polders, maintain the waterways inside a polder, and control the various water levels inside and outside the polder. Water boards hold separate elections, levy taxes, and function independently from other government bodies. Their function is basically unchanged even today. As such, they are the oldest democratic institutions in the country. The necessary cooperation among all ranks to maintain polder integrity gave its name to the Dutch version of third-way politics—the '' Polder Model''. The 1953 flood disaster prompted a new approach to the design of dikes and other water-retaining structures, based on an acceptable probability of overflowing. Risk is defined as the product of probability and consequences. The potential damage in lives, property, and rebuilding costs is compared with the potential cost of water defences. From these calculations follows an acceptable flood risk from the sea at one in 4,000–10,000 years, while it is one in 100–2,500 years for a river flood. The particular established policy guides the Dutch government to improve flood defences as new data on threat levels become available. Major Dutch polders and the years they were laid dry include Beemster (1609–1612), Schermer (1633–1635), and
Haarlemmermeerpolder Haarlemmermeer () is a municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Haarlemmermeer is a polder, consisting of land reclaimed from water. The name Haarlemmermeer means ' Haarlem's lake', referring to the body of w ...
(1852). Polders created as part of the Zuiderzee Works include
Wieringermeerpolder Wieringermeer () is a former municipality and a polder in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Since 2012 Wieringermeer has been a part of the new municipality of Hollands Kroon. Population centres The former municipality of W ...
(1930),
Noordoostpolder Noordoostpolder (; en, "North-East Polder") is a polder and municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called '' Urker Land''. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noord ...
(1942) and Flevopolder (1956–1968)


Examples of polders


Bangladesh

Bangladesh has 139 polders, of which 49 are sea-facing, while the rest are along the numerous distributaries of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna River delta. These were constructed in the 1960s to protect the coast from tidal flooding and reduce salinity incursion. They reduce long-term flooding and waterlogging following
storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...
s from tropical cyclones. They are also cultivated for agriculture.


Belgium

* De Moeren, near Veurne in West Flanders * Polders along the
Yser The Yser ( , ; nl, IJzer ) is a river that rises in French Flanders (the north of France), enters the Belgian province of West Flanders and flows through the '' Ganzepoot'' and into the North Sea at the town of Nieuwpoort. The source of the Ys ...
river between Nieuwpoort and
Diksmuide (; french: Dixmude, ; vls, Diksmude) is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of proper and the former communes of Beerst, Esen, Kaaskerke, Keiem, Lampernisse, Leke, N ...
* Polders of Muisbroek and Ettenhoven, in
Ekeren Ekeren () is a northern district of the municipality of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. The suburb celebrated its 850th birthday in 2005; the name of the town was first mentioned in 1155, as "Hecerna". The name possibly originates from ...
and Hoevenen * Polder of Stabroek, in Stabroek * Kabeljauwpolder, in
Zandvliet Zandvliet () is a former Belgian town forming part of the Antwerp district of Berendrecht-Zandvliet-Lillo. The place dates back to 1135 when it was known as ''Santflit'', meaning "a navigable passage through sand". In 1622 the Spaniard Ambrogio ...
* Scheldepolders on the left bank of
the Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding ...
* Uitkerkse polders, near Blankenberge in West Flanders * Prosperpolder, near Doel, Antwerp and Kieldrecht.


Canada

*
Tantramar Marshes The Tantramar Marshes, also known as the Tintamarre National Wildlife Area, is a tidal saltmarsh around the Bay of Fundy on the Isthmus of Chignecto. The area borders between Route 940, Route 16 and Route 2 near Sackville, New Brunswick. The g ...
* Holland Marsh *
Pitt Polder Ecological Reserve Pitt most commonly refers to: *The University of Pittsburgh, commonly known as Pitt, a university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States **Pitt Panthers, the athletic teams of the University of Pittsburgh * Pitt (surname), a surname o ...
*
Grand Pré, Nova Scotia Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and co ...
* Minas Basin


China

* The city of Kunshan has over 100 polders.


History

The Jiangnan region, at the Yangtze River Delta, has a long history of constructing polders. Most of these projects were performed between the 10th and 13th centuries. The Chinese government also assisted local communities in constructing dikes for swampland water drainage. The Lijia (里甲) self-monitoring system of 110 households under a ''lizhang'' (里长) headman was used for the purposes of service administration and tax collection in the polder, with a ''liangzhang'' (粮长, grain chief) responsible for maintaining the water system and a ''tangzhang'' (塘长, dike chief)for polder maintenance.


Denmark

* Filsø *
Lammefjorden The Lammefjord is a polder in Denmark at the base of the Odsherred peninsula. Previously a deeply branched arm of the sea leading west from the Isefjord, most of it is now reclaimed as agricultural land. The eastern third, outside the dyke at Avdeb ...


Finland

*
Söderfjärden Söderfjärden is a polder in Ostrobothnia, western Finland, 10 kilometres south of the town of Vaasa. The plain is in an impact crater which was made at least some 640 million years old (Proterozoic, near the end of the Cryogenian). The crater's ...
* Munsmo * Two polders ( in total) near Vassor in Korsholm


France

* Marais Poitevin *
Les Moëres De Moeren (Dutch) or Les Moëres (French) are a marshy region in the Westhoek, politically divided between the French-Belgian border. At one time the area was inhabited by the Gallic people known as the Morini; they are believed to have lent t ...
, adjacent to the Flemish polder ''De Moeren'' in Belgium.


Germany

In Germany, land reclaimed by diking is called a ''koog''. The German ''Deichgraf'' system was similar to the Dutch and is widely known from Theodor Storm's novella ''
The Rider on the White Horse ''The Rider on the White Horse'' (German: ''Der Schimmelreiter'') is a novella by German writer Theodor Storm. It is his last complete work, first published in 1888, the year of his death. The novella is Storm's best remembered and most widely read ...
''. * Altes Land near Hamburg * Blockland and Hollerland near Bremen *
Nordstrand, Germany ( North Frisian: ''di Ströön'') is a peninsula and former island in North Frisia on the North Sea coast of Germany. It is part of the Nordfriesland district in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. Its area is 50 km² and its populatio ...
* Bormerkoog and Meggerkoog near
Friedrichstadt Friedrichstadt (; da, Frederiksstad) is a town in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the river Eider approx. 12 km south of Husum. History The town was founded in 1621 by Dutch settlers. Du ...
* 36 ''koogs'' in the district of
Nordfriesland Nordfriesland (; da, Nordfrisland; frr, Nordfraschlönj ), also known as North Frisia, is the northernmost district of Germany, part of the state of Schleswig-Holstein. It includes almost all of traditional North Frisia (with the exception o ...
* 12 ''koogs'' in the district of Dithmarschen In southern Germany, the term ''polder'' is used for
retention basin A retention basin, sometimes called a wet pond, wet detention basin, or stormwater management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage stormwater r ...
s recreated by opening dikes during river
floodplain restoration Floodplain restoration is the process of fully or partially restoring a river's floodplain to its original conditions before having been affected by the construction of levees (dikes) and the draining of wetlands and marshes. The objectives of re ...
, a meaning somewhat opposite to that in coastal context.


Guyana

* Black Bush Polder, Corentyne, Berbice.


India

* Kuttanad Region, Kerala


Ireland

* Lough Swilly, Co.
Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...
. Near
Inch Island Inch Island (; Also spelled in Irish as ''An Inis''.) is in Inishowen, County Donegal, Ireland. The island is in Lough Swilly, a sea lough on the northern coast of Ireland. ''Discoverer Series'' Sheet 7 (F Edition). Ordnance Survey of Northern Ir ...
and Newtowncunningham.


Italy

* Delta of the river Po, such as Bonifica Valle del Mezzano


Japan

* Around the Ariake Sea in Kyushu, mainly in
Saga is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...
but also in Fukuoka and Kumamoto Prefectures


Lithuania

*
Rusnė Island Rusnė Island is an island in Nemunas Delta, Šilutė District Municipality, Lithuania. It is located between Atmata and Skirvytė, distributaries of the Neman River, and the Curonian Lagoon. At 45 or 46 square kilometers, Rusnė is often conside ...


Netherlands

* Achtermeer, the oldest polder, from 1533 * Alblasserwaard, containing the windmills of Kinderdijk, a World Heritage Site *
Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland, about 30 km north of Amsterdam. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The ...
* Andijk *
Anna Paulownapolder The Anna Paulownapolder () is a polder in the municipality of Hollands Kroon in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. The area of the polder is 50 square kilometres and it forms an important horticulture area, with among other things fl ...
* Beemster, a World Heritage Site * Bijlmermeer * Flevopolder, the largest artificial island in the world, youngest polder, last part drained in 1968 *
's-Gravesloot 's-Gravesloot on a map from 1901 's-Gravesloot in 2007 s-Gravesloot is a former hamlet and municipality in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It was located between Kamerik and Woerden. 's-Gravesloot was a ''heerlijkheid'' ( manor) owned by the provi ...
* Haarlemmermeer, containing Schiphol airport *
Krimpenerwaard Krimpenerwaard () is a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality, a List of regions of the Netherlands, region and a former Water board (Netherlands), water board of the Netherlands. It is a rural area located in the east of the p ...
*
Lauwersmeer Lauwersmeer () is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 23 May 1969, when the dike between the bay called Lauwers Sea and the Wadden Sea was closed. It is ...
* Mastenbroek *
Noordoostpolder Noordoostpolder (; en, "North-East Polder") is a polder and municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called '' Urker Land''. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noord ...
* Prins Alexanderpolder *
Purmer Purmer is a polder and reclaimed lake in the Netherlands province of North Holland, located between the towns of Purmerend and Edam-Volendam. It is also a village located in the municipalities of Waterland and Edam-Volendam. Purmer polder Wind ...
* Schermer *
Watergraafsmeer The Watergraafsmeer is a polder in the Netherlands. It was reclaimed in 1629. In the 17th and 18th centuries, there were many buitenplaatsen in the Watergraafsmeer, though nowadays only one, Frankendael, remains. Since 1921, the Watergraafsmee ...
* Wieringermeer *
Wieringerwaard Wieringerwaard is a polder and a village in the municipality of Hollands Kroon in the Dutch province of North Holland. Wieringerwaard was formerly a separate municipality, until it merged with Barsingerhorn in 1970. History The polder was la ...
* Wijdewormer * Zestienhoven, home of the Rotterdam The Hague Airport (
Overschie Overschie is a neighborhood of Rotterdam, Netherlands, formerly a separate village with its own municipality. The village of Overschie was located on the intersection of four rivers called "Schie": the Delftsche Schie, Schiedamsche Schie, Delfs ...
), in the city of Rotterdam. * Zuidplaspolder, along with Lammefjord in Denmark the lowest point of the European Union


Poland

* Vistula delta near
Elbląg Elbląg (; german: Elbing, Old Prussian: ''Elbings'') is a city in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland, located in the eastern edge of the Żuławy region with 117,390 inhabitants, as of December 2021. It is the capital of Elbląg County. ...
and Nowy Dwór Gdański * Warta delta near Kostrzyn nad Odrą


Singapore

* Parts of Pulau Tekong


Slovenia

* The Ankaran/Ancarano Polder ( sl, Ankaranska bonifika), Semedela Polder (), and Škocjan Polder () in reclaimed land around Koper/Capodistria.


South Korea

* Parts of the coast of Ganghwa Island, adjacent to the river
Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...
in
Incheon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...
* Delta of the river Nakdong in Busan * Saemangeum in North Jeolla Province


Spain

* Parts of
Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...
were built on reclaimed land


United Kingdom

* Traeth Mawr *
Sunk Island Sunk Island is a Crown Estate village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies south of Ottringham and to the north of the Humber Estuary. The Greenwich Meridian passes through the east of the parish. According ...
, on the north shore of the Humber east of
Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...
* Caldicot and Wentloog Levels along the Severn Estuary in South Wales * Parts of The Fens ** Branston Island, by the River Witham outside the conventional area of the fens but connected to them. * Parts of the coast of Essex * Some land along the River Plym in
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...
* Some land around Meathop east of Grange-over-Sands, reclaimed as a side-effect of building a railway
embankment Embankment may refer to: Geology and geography * A levee, an artificial bank raised above the immediately surrounding land to redirect or prevent flooding by a river, lake or sea * Embankment (earthworks), a raised bank to carry a road, railwa ...
* The Somerset Levels and
North Somerset Levels The North Somerset Levels is a coastal plain, an expanse of low-lying flat ground, which occupies an area between Weston-super-Mare and Bristol in North Somerset, England. The River Banwell, River Kenn, River Yeo and Land Yeo are the three prin ...
* Romney Marsh * Sealand, Flintshire *
Humberhead Levels The Humberhead Levels is a national character area covering a large expanse of flat, low-lying land towards the western end of the Humber estuary in northern England. The levels occupy the former Glacial Lake Humber, an area bounded to the east ...


United States

* New Orleans *
Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...


See also

* Afsluitdijk * Flood control in the Netherlands *
Land reclamation Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamati ...
* Windpump


References


Further reading

* Derex, Jean-Michel, Franco Cazzola (eds.) 2004. 2nd ed. 2013. ''Eau et développement dans l'Europe moderne''. Paris, Maison des Sciences De L'Homme * Farjon, J.M.J., J. Dirkx, A. Koomen, J. Vervloet & W. Lammers. 2001. ''Neder-landschap Internationaal: bouwstenen voor een selectie van gebieden landschapsbehoud.'' Alterra, Wageningen
Rapport 358
* Stenak, Morten. 2005. ''De inddæmmede Landskaber – En historisk geografi.'' Landbohistorik Selskab. *
Polders of the World. Keynotes International Symposium
'. 1982. Lelystad, The Netherlands * Ven, G.P. van de (ed.) 1993, 4th ed. 2004. ''Man-made Lowlands. History of Water Management and Land Reclamation in the Netherlands'', Matrijs, Utrecht. * Wagret, Paul. 1972. ''Polderlands.'' London: Methuen.


External links



– ''in a northwest European and a landmark context''.

{{Authority control Artificial landforms Land reclamation Environmental soil science Riparian zone Coastal construction Freshwater ecology