Maas–Waal Canal

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Maas–Waal Canal
Maaswaalkanaal.jpg
Aerial view of the river Maas and the Maas–Waal Canal near Heumen
Location Maas-Waalkanaal.PNG
Location of the Maas–Waal Canal
Specifications
Length13.5 km (8.4 miles)
Locks2
Statusopen
History
Construction began1920
Date completed1927
Date extended1970
Geography
Start point Weurt
End point Heumen

The Maas–Waal Canal (Dutch: Maas–Waalkanaal) is a canal in the Netherlands that connects the river Meuse (Dutch: Maas) to the river Waal. The channel is about 13.5 kilometres (8.4 mi) long and runs from Weurt (west of Nijmegen) to the south and ends at Heumen. The connection of the Meuse and the Maas–Waal Canal is the tripoint between the provinces of Gelderland, Limburg and North Brabant.

Meuse river in western Europe

The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of 925 km.

Waal (river) river in the Netherlands

The Waal is the main distributary branch of the river Rhine flowing approximately 80 km (50 mi) through the Netherlands. It is the major waterway connecting the port of Rotterdam to Germany. Before it reaches Rotterdam, it joins with the Afgedamde Maas near Woudrichem to form the Boven Merwede. Along its length, Nijmegen, Tiel, Zaltbommel and Gorinchem are towns of importance with direct access to the river.

Weurt Village in Gelderland, Netherlands

Weurt is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is a part of the municipality of Beuningen, and lies about 0.1 km West of Nijmegen.

Contents

History

Construction on the canal began in 1920. On 27 October 1927, the waterway was officially opened by HM Queen Wilhelmina. Before the canal was dug, ships had to make a detour of about 100 km (62 mi) to change from Heumen to Nijmegen to reach the German hinterland; the new route shortened the trip to ~12 km (7.5 mi).

Heumen Municipality in Gelderland, Netherlands

Heumen is a municipality and a village in the eastern Netherlands.

Nijmegen City and municipality in Gelderland, Netherlands

Nijmegen is a city in the Dutch province of Gelderland, on the Waal river close to the German border.

The consequences for the village of Heumen were unmistakable. It became isolated in a hard to reach corner between the Meuse and the canal. The village of Neerbosch was cut in half, and the centre of the village of Hatert was torn down to make room for a bridge across the canal. The village also lost its church and both pubs.

Hatert is a suburb in the south of Nijmegen, in the Netherlands. It is situated between the centre of Nijmegen and the suburb of Dukenburg. It is renowned for its big shopping centre Hatert Centrum and the market every Wednesday attracts a lot of visitors from all over the town. It is a relatively new suburb having been created in the 20th century.

In 1970, it was decided to widen the canal at an estimated cost of 117 million Dutch guilders (53 million euro). At around the same time, the city of Nijmegen decided to construct a new neighborhood, Dukenburg, on the far (Western) side of the canal. Less than 10 years later, another neighborhood, Lindenholt, was added in the area where the older part of Neerbosch had been. This left the canal lying largely inside the built-up area of Nijmegen.

In 2002, H. van Eeuwijk and G. J. Nillesen published their booklet Three-quarter Century of Maas–Waal Canal 1927–2002 on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the connection between the Maas and Waal.

Water level

Aerial view of the river Maas and the Maas-Waal Canal near Heumen Maaswaalkanaal.jpg
Aerial view of the river Maas and the Maas–Waal Canal near Heumen

Although the canal is located entirely in Gelderland, the management is in the hands of Rijkswaterstaat directorate Limburg. There is a lock in Weurt, and another one in Heumen, but the latter is almost always open. This is because the water of the Maas at Heumen is maintained at a constant level through a weir in Grave.

Gelderland Province of the Netherlands

Gelderland is a province of the Netherlands, located in the central eastern part of the country. With a land area of nearly 5,000 km2, it is the largest province of the Netherlands and shares borders with six other provinces and Germany.

Weir barrier across a river designed to alter its flow characteristics

A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. There are many designs of weir, but commonly water flows freely over the top of the weir crest before cascading down to a lower level.

Grave, Netherlands Municipality in North Brabant, Netherlands

Grave is a municipality in the Dutch province North Brabant. The municipality had a population of 12,395 in 2017. Grave is a member of the Dutch Association of Fortified Cities.

In 2007 and 2008 several bridges were jacked up by 25 to 35 cm (9.8 to 13.8 in), so the water level in the channel could be increased. This allowed container ships with four layers of containers to use of the canal. [1] Raising the water level in the canal will lead to higher groundwater levels in areas directly adjacent to the canal. Rijkswaterstaat will construct a drainage system to prevent possible negative consequences.

Intermodal container Standardized reusable steel box used for transporting goods

An intermodal container is a large standardized shipping container, designed and built for intermodal freight transport, meaning these containers can be used across different modes of transport – from ship to rail to truck – without unloading and reloading their cargo. Intermodal containers are primarily used to store and transport materials and products efficiently and securely in the global containerized intermodal freight transport system, but smaller numbers are in regional use as well. These containers are known under a number of names, such as simply container, cargo or freight container, ISO container, shipping, sea or ocean container, sea van or (Conex) box, sea can or c can.

Bridges

From north to south, the Maas–Waal Canal is bridged by the following roads:

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Rhine river in Western Europe

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The Bergse Maas is a canal that was constructed in 1904 to be a branch of the Maas River in the Dutch province of North Brabant. The Maas splits near Heusden into the Afgedamde Maas and the Bergse Maas. The Afgedamde Maas flows north until its confluence with the river Waal to form the Merwede, while the Bergse Maas continues west as the main distributary of the Maas. Part of the Merwede rejoins the Bergse Maas to form the Hollands Diep estuary.

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Heusden Canal

The Heusden Canal is a canal on the border of the Dutch provinces North Brabant and Gelderland, roughly between Wijk en Aalburg and Heusden. The canal connects the Afgedamde Maas and Bergse Maas and has a total length of approximately 2.3 km. The canal used to connect the city of Heusden to the main branch of the river Meuse. Later on, the original main branch was closed off and the river received a new, artificial mouth: the Bergse Maas. After that, the Heusden Canal was improved to maintain a shipping connection between the two Meuse branches.

References

Footnotes

  1. City of Nijmegen – Bridges over Maas–Waal Canal jacked up

Coordinates: 51°48′1″N5°49′14″E / 51.80028°N 5.82056°E / 51.80028; 5.82056