Boskalis kicking off one of the largest beach nourishment projects in NL

From the beginning of May to August 2023, Rijkswaterstaat will be renourishing the beach on the west side of Ameland, near Hollum, the Netherlands.

According to the agency, Boskalis dredgers will bring more than 3 million m3 of sand from the North Sea to the beach this summer.

This large sand replenishment is necessary to keep the coastline in place, so that Ameland remains well protected against the sea.

“With previous nourishments, most recently in 2019 (2.4 million m3), we were able to keep the coast in place. Because the coast continues to wear away at this location, we will be sanding here again this summer,” said Rijkswaterstaat in the release.

The Ameland beach replenishment scheme is one of the largest sand nourishments along the Dutch coast. Using hopper dredgers, Boskalis will suck up sand from the seabed and move it onto the beach through long pipes.

Onshore, bulldozers will spread the sand around allowing it to drift into the dunes In this way, the project will strengthen the coast and the seawall with the help of nature.