View across the Markermeer

The Markermeer ("Lake Marken") is a 700 km² lake in the central Netherlands in between North Holland, Flevoland and its larger sibling, the IJsselmeer. A shallow lake at some 3 to 4 m in depth, it is named after the small former island, now peninsula of Marken that lies within it. Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 564 KB)My own picture File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 564 KB)My own picture File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Waterland is a municipality in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. ... North Holland: (Dutch: Noord-Holland) is a province of the Netherlands, located in the northwest part of the country. ... Flevoland is a province of the Netherlands. ... IJsselmeer seen from space The IJsselmeer (or Lake IJssel) is a shallow lake of some 1250 km² in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland, with an average depth of 5 to 6 m. ... A peninsula is a geographical formation consisting of an extension of land from a larger body, surrounded by water on three sides. ... Waterland is a municipality in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. ...

The Markermeer was not originally intended to remain a lake. It used to be part of the Zuiderzee, a salt water inlet of the North Sea, that was dammed off by the Afsluitdijk (Closure-dike) in 1932, turning the Zuiderzee into the fresh water IJsselmeer. The following years would see the reclamation of extensive tracts of land through construction of large polders in a massive project known as the Zuiderzee Works (see there for map). One of these, the Markerwaard was to occupy the area of the current Markermeer. Part of the construction of this last polder was the building of the Houtribdijk, also called Markerwaarddijk, finished in 1976, which hydrologically splits the IJsselmeer in two, the southern section being the Markermeer. Landsat photo The Zuider Zee (Dutch: Zuiderzee, pronounced ZIGH-der-zee) was a former shallow inlet of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km inland and at most 50 km wide, with an overall depth of about 4 to 5 meters and a coastline... The North Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, located between the coasts of Norway and Denmark in the east, the coast of the British Isles in the west, and the German, Dutch, Belgian and French coasts in the south. ... Afsluitdijk The Afsluitdijk (Closure-dike) is a major dam in the Netherlands, constructed between 1927 and 1933 and running from Den Oever on Wieringen in North Holland province, to the village of Zurich (mun. ... 1932 is a leap year starting on a Friday. ... A polder is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes and requiring drainage by pumps to prevent the water table within it from rising too high. ... The 32 km long Afsluitdijk separates the IJsselmeer from the North Sea, protecting thousands of km² of land. ... 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Because of changing priorities and doubts about the financial feasibility the Markerwaard was indefinitely postponed in the 1980s and the Markermeer has since begun to become a valuable ecological and recreational asset of its own. // Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ...

The Markerwaard is used as a freshwater reservoir and a buffer against flood waters and droughts. In 2003 Holland was hit by drought, and several peat-dikes were endangoured or even collapsed. The Dutch took measures and reversed water-flows in the Amsterdam area, so that water from the Markermeer helped to wet the endangeroud areas. 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Amsterdam Location Country The Netherlands Province North Holland Population 739,295 (1 January 2005) Coordinates 4°89E - 52°37N Website www. ...