Integrated Water Cycle Program
On March 7, 2024, the 2024–2028 Integrated Water Cycle Program (IWKp) was adopted at the “ municipal council .” This programme addresses the water cycle in the Leiden region. The municipalities of Leiden, Leiderdorp, Oegstgeest, Zoeterwoude, Wassenaar, and Voorschoten are developing this plan in collaboration with the Rijnland Water Board and the drinking water company Dunea. The programme is valid through 2028 and succeeds the IWKp 2019–2023. It is important to work on this together. How we manage water as a community does not stop at municipal boundaries.
Municipal water duties – why an IWKp?
The water cycle program specifies which party is responsible for what. Within this collaborative framework, all parties have their own tasks and responsibilities. But in essence, there is a single system: the water cycle. Municipalities are responsible for waste water, stormwater, and groundwater. The water authority is responsible for water management and wastewater treatment. The production and delivery of drinking water are also part of the programme. We refer to this as drinking water production and supply. Drinking water companies ensure the sustainable security of the drinking water supply.
What does this mean for Voorschoten?
One of the agreements in the IKWp is the approach to the sewage system. In many neighbourhoods in Voorschoten, rainwater is discharged through the same sewer pipe as wastewater. The municipality is going to change this: neighbourhood by neighbourhood, we will ensure that rainwater is discharged separately into ditches and other waterways. As a result, the volume of wastewater going to the treatment plant will decrease. This has already been done in the Vlietwijk, and this year we will start in the Adegeest neighbourhood. This creates sufficient capacity in the sewer system for the homes that will be built in the coming years.
Contact
If you have any questions regarding the plan, you can send an email to Mr M. Buitenhuis via mbuitenhuis@voorschoten.nl.