Waterland

- Niels Stomps

Due to the persistent drought, ground and surface water is becoming salinized. The rise in temperature and subsidence result in a different composition of nature and crops. Agriculture should adapt quickly to this. Water pollution, caused by waste and medicine residues, is also a bigger growing problem in and around cities, rivers, lakes and coastal areas. How are these radical changes visible? What influence do altering aquatic conditions have on urban and peripheral urban ecology, raw materials, water and food supplies? In Waterland, a project started by Stomps in February 2021, research is being conducted into how the urban river and coastal environment are changing. A social anthropological and photographic time document unfolds with the status of now and a glimpse into the future. In collaboration with residents, a number of important stakeholders, artists, designers and scientific institutions, a growing document of time is visualized, which also provides room for historical reflection.