What are the water boards doing? (elections 2023)
How a vote in water board elections contributes to your inclusive, fair and sustainable future.
On 15 March, not only can you vote for the Provincial Council, the water board elections will also be held then. But what do you actually vote for? And how does your vote influence policy?
About the water boards
The Netherlands is water land; with more than 25 per cent of our land below sea level, good policies are needed to keep our feet dry. The effects of climate change are also making water management increasingly difficult. We face more drought, but also greater amounts of rainfall. Since the Middle Ages, water management has been seen as a shared responsibility. Even then, administrators were elected to manage water. The water boards, in some cases also called district water boards, are therefore the oldest democratic institution in the Netherlands. Yet the water boards are relatively unknown; many people know the water boards mainly because of the water board tax that has to be paid every year. With that money, our country's 21 water boards not only prevent floods, they also manage groundwater levels and ensure clean water.
Responsibilities and differences
Dry feet and clean water, nobody is really against that. Yet there are issues where opinions differ. For instance, should we raise the dykes, or give the water some space? Is the emphasis on lowering costs, or should sustainability come first? And should groundwater levels be kept low, benefiting agriculture, or is a high water level needed to improve biodiversity? To get a good idea of the questions your region's water board is dealing with, it is useful to fill in a voter guide. Here, important dilemmas are listed and you can read what the different parties think about these issues.
What am I voting for?
During the water board elections, you can vote for candidate water board members. If an elected candidate obtains enough votes, he or she secures a seat on the water board. Not all seats in the general board of the water board are electable; in addition to seats that are eligible, there are also guaranteed seats. Currently, each water board has between 7 and 9 guaranteed seats; these are reserved for representatives of the business community, the agricultural sector and nature and environmental organisations. Due to a proposal by D66 and GroenLinks, the guaranteed seats for the business community will disappear from the general board after the upcoming elections. There will then be only four guaranteed seats per water board: two for the agricultural sector and two for nature and environmental organisations.
The general board can approve or reject policies and controls the executive board of the water board, consisting of a dike grave (D) and heemraden (H), also known as the college of D&H. Heemraden are elected by the general board and implement approved policies. The dike reeve is the chairman of the general and executive board of the water board. The dike reeve is appointed by the government, for a period of six years.
Now that you know what you can vote for, it is still time to find out who your vote will go to. GroenLinks does not participate in the water board elections under its own name, but supports the party Water Natuurlijk. There are also many DWARSers standing as candidates for the water boards! View our voting recommendation per water board.