As noted earlier, the Netherlands has an open economy, which has made it experience rapid economic expansion in the last ten years. With a wide range of products manufactured for exportation, such as agricultural products, Dutch have become the sixth-largest exporting country in the world. It is noted that the Netherlands GDP is the 14 th largest in the world (OECD, 2018). In other words, Dutch have become a hub of international commerce. Its primary transportation infrastructure is located in Rotterdam, which is termed the world's busiest port. Also, another primary transportation terminal is located at Amsterdam-Schiphol airport. As a result of the commercial activities and location of these world’s largest primary transportation terminals in the Netherlands, its population has grown and expanded considerably at higher rates. Combined with Dutch's delicate location and balance between land and water, the pressure established due to intensive commercial activities and rapidly growing population has made environmental protection a matter of great significance to Dutch.
It has been observed that there are several factors contributing to high commercial activities and population growth in the Netherlands. First, the location of the country is vital in its economic development. For instance, the Netherlands is bordered by the North Sea both to the west and the north. The North Sea has the port of Rotterdam that connects the Netherlands to other idyllic harbor towns such as Brouwershaven. Both tourism and trade are increased in the Netherlands due to its location near the sea. Regarding the demography of the Netherlands, as of December 2020, it was reported that the total population was 17,474,677 ( Statista, 2020) . Such high population can be attributed to high interaction of people in primary harbors and transportation terminals such as Amsterdam-Schiphol airport. High rates of economic activities and population create high pressure on Dutch’s environment.
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In the Netherlands, environmental issues show strong international dimensions, which reflect regional environmental interdependencies such as the North Sea pollution. Additionally, the environmental issues associated with the regional economic interdependencies, such as the Netherland’s roles as a gateway to Europe (Sanders et al., 2019). Nonetheless, Dutch's environmental issues also relate to general global environmental issues such as vulnerability to sea-level rise and climate changes and the importance of environmental aid and trade. Regarding sustainability, it is noted that the Netherlands has made substantial efforts since the 1990s in resolving various environmental pressures resulting from commercial activities and increasing population (Sanders et al., 2019). The solutions made have ensured that Dutch meet several of its ambitious environmental regulation objectives. The progress made by Dutch can be noted in the reshaping of its economy and the introduction of better environmental policies not only in the Netherlands but also in other European Union (EU) nations ( Niestroy et al., 2019). Thus, Dutch has become one of the most sustainable countries in the world.
Currently, the most significant environmental issues include damage to the quality of life, threats to human external safety and health, over-exploitation of natural resources, climate changes, and loss of biodiversity. Arguably, most of these environmental issues experienced in the Netherlands arise from the development choices of intensive transportation and agricultural activities (Sanders et al., 2019). However, with regards to sustainability and economic development, it is noted that the Netherlands has made significant steps in controlling such environmental issues. For instance, in 2017, Dutch established relevant strategies to help control acts such as emission of toxic air contaminants like SO 2 , reduce the concentration of phosphorous in water, and prevent depletion of groundwater (Zoppi Loice, 2019). The Netherlands has also entered international agreements and commitments such as the trans-boundary air pollution and the North Sea targets. Also, the Netherlands has consistently encouraged companies to engage in recycling of waste products because recycling of such materials prolongs their useful life cycle.
In the Netherlands, various acts have been established to facilitate better environment management and increase sustainability levels. For instance, it is noted that the Dutch enacted the Environmental Management Act (EMA), which offers a framework for the coordination of environmental legislations (Zoppi Loice, 2019). The other environmental issues related to water, soil, and nature management are subjected to different individualized legislation. With the new legislation, the Netherlands government has established corporate financial liability terms for environmental damage. It is noted that fine levels are made proportional to companies' size in the Netherlands to ensure that all the manufacturing companies participate in environmental management. Fines have increased compliance levels, ensuring that actions such as the depletion of groundwater are limited. Besides, several fiscal and economic instruments are used in the Netherlands to control environmental issues and facilitate sustainability. There are continuous gradual moves to de-emphasize environmental regulations and agreements and emphasize more on economic instruments.
It is noted that most of the initially established national environmental policies targeting the reduction of emissions and improving environmental quality have not been implemented in the Netherlands (Glass & Newig, 2019). In achieving sustainability, Dutch have strategies that address nature conservation and water management separately. Resultantly, there has been a weakening in integrating water and nature management initiatives in local and central land use planning, for example, in green areas for conservation of nature. However, the Netherlands' performance in reducing environmental pressures and emissions in the air in the past decade has been substantial. It is noted that there has been a sustained GDP growth of 35% due to Netherlands initiatives. Besides, the overall expenditure on pollution control and abatement has gradually increased, from 1.9% of the GDP in 2016 to 2.6% in 2019 ( Statista, 2020). Such increment in expenditure reflects the government’s dedication to commit resources to mitigate environmental issues in Dutch.
Another strategy that Dutch has used in mitigating environmental issues is institution integration. The government and the private sectors have continued to work jointly in ensuring that favorable environmental management policies are established. The government of Netherlands has achieved better reliance and coordination with the private sectors through the guidelines set in the fourth national environmental policy plan (NEPP4) ( Niestroy et al., 2019). The established coordination has led to the rise of the concepts such as transition management and transition processes, which facilitate environmental degradation and enhance sustainability.
Although the Netherlands has taken significant steps in decoupling environmental pressures and establishing sustainability, it is noted that certain areas have proved to be elusive. For instance, the areas related to the impacts of urban sprawl and municipal waste, emission of carbon (IV) oxide, and continuous pressure on biodiversity. Concerning climate change, the Netherlands contributed actively in achieving progress towards the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol. Dutch has also established standards to aid in inspecting all the foreign ships coming into its harbors ( Niestroy et al., 2019). The purpose of such inspections is to ensure that such ships do not emit harmful gases into the air, or oil into the water bodies. In other words, the inspections ensure that foreign ships comply with the MARPOL standards. The Netherlands could improve its performance in meeting several international environmental commitments.
References
Glass, L., & Newig, J. (2019). Governance for achieving the sustainable development goals: How vital are participation, policy coherence, reflexivity, adaptation, and democratic institutions? Earth System Governance , 2 , 100031. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esg.2019.100031
Niestroy, I., Hege, E., Dirth, E., Zondervan, R., & Derr, K. (2019). Europe's approach to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals: Good practices and the way forward. European Parliament Policy Department for External Relations: Bruxelles, Belgium . https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2019/603473/EXPO_STU(2019)603473_EN.pdf
OECD. (2018, January 31). OECD iLibrary | OECD economic surveys: Netherlands 2008 . economic surveys: Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1787/eco_surveys-nld-2008-en
Sanders, M., Henkens, R., & Slijkerman, D. (2019). Convention on biological diversity : Sixth national report of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.18174/499170
Statista (2020, October 12). Netherlands - Government revenue and spending 2025 | Statista . https://www.statista.com/statistics/276728/government-revenue-and-spending-in-the-netherlands/
Zoppi Loice (2019, December 4). The Netherlands: Environmental issues, policies & clean technology . AZoCleantech. https://www.azocleantech.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=964
