Nesciobrug Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2006

Abstract

To deal with intense demand for housing in the Dutch capital, the IJburg district north of Amsterdam is being created on largely reclaimed land. Seven artificial islands are being made in the IJmeer, a freshwater lake created in the 1930s by closing a North Sea inlet. Over the years, the area has been colonised by wild species, so now it is a nature reserve, and a city quarter designed to cater for 45,000 people by 2012 is being added. It is essential that ecology and the new human habitats should not conflict, so great care is being taken to reconcile the two.