This Week in Wijnjewoude 2022

Week 21 A bit of a read, but we are in the middle of a drought . This article looks at the subsidence caused by the drying out of peat. The Frisian peatland has declined sharply since the Second World War due to drainage for livestock farming, in the context of land consolidation. The subsidence is enhanced by the oxidation of dried peat: it combines with oxygen, causing it to dissolve, as it were, to burn. Because of 'rusting' peat, the soil on which agriculture is practiced comes closer to the groundwater level, which means that additional dewatering has to be done in order to keep the peat soil usable and passable. A major problem, because the drainage of the peat areas is causing hundreds of houses and old farms that are poorly founded to subsidence. Many buildings stand on wooden piles that are suddenly no longer under water as a result of drainage by Wetterskip Fryslân, the water board, the currently most frequently appointed scapegoat. 5,100 Buildings in Friesland are no...

  From 2026, a hybrid heat pump will be mandatory when replacing the central heating boiler.  In this way, the cabinet hopes to become less dependent on natural gas.  What is a hybrid heat pump?  And will it fit in my house? With a hybrid heat pump, a house is not only heated with the central heating boiler, but also with a heat pump.  The heat pump provides electrical heating and in most cases ensures that your house remains warm without consuming gas.  Only when it gets too cold outside (just above freezing point) does your boiler switch on.  You also use the central heating boiler for hot water. Well-insulated houses can also use a fully electric heat pump.  This would allow them to completely get rid of the gas if cooking is also done on induction. Why make a hybrid heat pump mandatory, and not a fully electric heat pump?  This is mainly due to the insulation of most homes. Not every home is equally well insulated.  A fully electric ...

Week 19 Even in Wijnjewoude, there is an area set aside for the village residents who my not have much or any ground for a vegie garden. Working in our own garden drew my attention to this article in nu.nl Article: Allotments are more popular than ever. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the demand for your own vegetable or ornamental garden has taken off, spokesperson Herman Vroklage of the General Association of Public Gardeners Associations in the Netherlands (AVVN) told NU.nl. If you want a patch of ground, you have to be patient. Most allotment societies have long waiting lists of up to two years. Some associations have even set a holding period, which means that registration is not possible at the moment. Vroklage understands why the demand for allotments has increased during the corona pandemic, "because what on earth did you have to do? You could be in your garden and you could have contact with the neighbors over the hedge. An allotment garden is a safe haven." ."...