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MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
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|
 The Flevopolder | |
 Interactive map of Flevopolder | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Flevoland |
| Coordinates | 52°27′N 5°30′E / 52.450°N 5.500°E |
| Area | 970 km2 (370 sq mi) |
| Administration | |
Largest settlement | Almere[1] (pop. 202,764) |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 317,000 |
The Flevopolder is an island polder in Flevoland, a province of the Netherlands. Created by land reclamation, its northeastern part was drained in 1955 and the remainder—the southwest—in 1968.
Unlike other major polders, the Flevopolder is surrounded by lakes and below-sea-level channels. By some definitions, it is the world's largest artificial island.[2][3][a]
The Flevopolder was created as part of the Zuiderzeewerken, a hydraulic engineering project designed to separate the Zuiderzee from the North Sea and lower its water level, enabling the reclamation of land within the newly formed lake. Flevopolder was the most recent major area reclaimed from the Zuiderzee, following the Wieringermeerpolder to the north and the Noordoostpolder to the east.
The Flevopolder was constructed in two stages. The polder that now forms the northeast half of the island was completed in 1957, followed by a second polder for the southwest half in 1968. Levees and dikes were first built around the region, after which the internal water was drained by diesel and electric pumps. Unlike the other polders constructed during the project, the Flevopolder was left entirely surrounded by water, as the experience of building the earlier polders had demonstrated that it was the best way to avoid subsidence in the adjacent mainland.
The Flevopolder together with the Noordoostpolder forms the province of Flevoland, the most recent province to be added to the Netherlands. Its southwestern point is close to Amsterdam and its opposite end is close to Kampen, Overijssel. To the north are two freshwater lakes, IJsselmeer and Markermeer. The Flevopolder has numerous bordering lakes to the south and east, including IJmeer, Veluwemeer, Ketelmeer, and Gooimeer.
The most populated city on the island is Almere, followed by Lelystad. Other population centers include Zeewolde, Biddinghuizen, Dronten and Swifterbant.
Biddinghuizen is known for the Walibi theme park. Lelystad is named for Cornelis Lely, a Dutch politician and one of the early planners of the land reclamation project. The Oostvaardersplassen is a Nature Reserve where birds and other animals reside.
Almere and Lelystad count for more than 70% of the population. The polder consists of Four Municipalities; Lelystad, Almere, Dronten and Zeewolde (Swifterbant and Biddinghuizen are both part of the Dronten Municipality).
Almere and Lelystad are major cities and are part of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area. They are used to house refugees to limit overpopulation.
While most people reside in the major city of Almere, the capital of Flevoland is Lelystad. Dronten is the third most populous city in the Flevopolder with Zeewolde, Biddinghuizen and Swifterbant being less populated.
Almere Stad, Almere Pampus, Almere Haven, Almere Poort, Almere Buiten and Almere Hout are the 6 districts, with Almere Muziekwijk and Overgooi debated if they are districts or not.
The polder's name refers to the ancient Lake Flevo.
Source: Wikipedia. Article content is retrieved live through the MediaWiki API.
The Flevopolder is an island polder in Flevoland, a province of the Netherlands. Created by land reclamation, its northeastern part was drained in 1955 and the remainder—the southwest—in 1968. Unlike other major polders, the Flevopolder is surrounded by lakes and below-sea-level channels. By some definitions, it is the world's largest artificial island.
A polder (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈpɔldər] ) 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 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 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 sluices at low tide. 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 of 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 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 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 Imperial German army. The 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. IJsselmeer is the most famous polder project of the Netherlands. Some other countries which have polders are Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada and China. Some examples of Dutch polder projects are Beemster, Schermer, Flevopolder and Noordoostpolder.
Goeree-Overflakkee (Dutch pronunciation: [ɣuˌreː ˈoːvərflɑˌkeː]) is a delta island and an administrative municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands, with a population of 50,589. It is the largest island by land area in the Netherlands after the man-made Flevopolder. Goeree-Overflakkee is separated from the islands of Voorne-Putten and Hoeksche Waard by the Haringvliet, from the mainland of North Brabant by the Volkerak, and from Schouwen-Duiveland by Lake Grevelingen. Despite being part of the province of South Holland, the island's scenery and dialect are more closely related to Zeeland than to Holland. On the island they speak a form of Zeelandic, namely Goereês in the west and Flakkees in the east.
The Markerwaard is the name of a proposed, but never built, polder adjoining the IJsselmeer in the central Netherlands. Its construction would have resulted in the near-total reclamation of the Markermeer. Cornelis Lely's plan projected a polder in the south-west of the Zuiderzee, originally named Hoornsche Polder, referring to Hoorn, then simply "Southwest Polder". Later the name was changed to Markerwaard Polder, after the island of Marken. However, reclamation of three other polders took place first, and preparations for the Markerwaard were being made while draining of the northeast and southeast polders (today's Flevoland) were underway. In 1941 work for this project started; about 2 km (1¼ miles) of a dike north of Marken was built. It would have had an area of nearly 600 km2 (200 sq. mi.). Later, it was decided that the Flevopolder should have priority. In 1957, the island of Marken was connected to mainland Holland. In 1976 the dam Houtribdijk connecting Enkhuizen and Lelystad was completed, a necessary step in the construction of Markerwaard, the dikes for the bordering lakes were still to be completed. However the entire project became mired in political and environmental controversy. In the late 1970s, the project was revised down leaving wide bordering lakes between the polder and North Holland. Marken would remain a peninsula, unlike on the original project. At this stage, the Markerwaard would have had an area of 410 km2 (160 sq. mi.). As of 1961 Markerwaard was expected to be finished in 1978. The debate on a final decision regarding it took over twenty years. The questions concerned the need, on one side, for more agricultural areas, new residential subdivisions, and a new airport (to relieve pressure on Schiphol). On the other side of the debate were primarily ecological issues, with the argument that the value of the lake as a recreation area was considered by some to be stronger than the potential benefits of the polder. Additionally, it was argued that, in case of drought, the lake would be very useful for the production of drinking water, and that in heavy weather, the lake serves as a buffer zone. Finally, in 2003, it was decided not to build this polder. However discussions never completely closed. In 2012, plans emerged to create the Marker Wadden, a group of islands designed to establish nature reserves in the north of the Markermeer. In contrast to the Markerwaard, no human occupation is planned. The creation process began in early 2016.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
MORE →Mae Jemison, aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1992.
