Editing Zuiderzee Works (section)

=== Markerwaard ===
Markerwaard was a planned fifth polder that has never been completed. It was intended to build a south-western polder, to be called the [[Markerwaard]], at several times during the project, but other polders took precedence. Parts of it have been built; in 1941 it was decided to begin work on the first section of dike, but the German occupiers stopped construction that same year. This dike originated on [[Marken]], the last of the IJsselmeer islands, and went north for some {{cvt|2|km}} where it ends abruptly today. After [[World War II]], the eastern polder was chosen as the next project, but Marken was not wholly ignored; on 17 October 1957, a {{cvt|3.5|km}} long dike was closed, running south of the now former island to the [[North Holland]] mainland.
[[File:Markerwaard 1981.jpg|thumb|upright|Markerwaard as envisioned in 1981]]
When construction started in 1959 on a new dike it had not yet been decided whether this would be the northern dike of Southern Flevoland or the southern dike of the Markerwaard, but the choice eventually fell to the former and another chance for the Markerwaard had passed. A minor flood near Amsterdam in 1960 had demonstrated the danger a large IJsselmeer still presented. A further planned element of the Markerwaard was subsequently executed: a 28&nbsp;km dike between Lelystad and [[Enkhuizen]], including two complexes of locks and discharge sluices at either end, was to split the IJsselmeer in two, with the largest portion ({{cvt|1250|km2}}) continuing as the IJsselmeer and the smaller lake ({{cvt|700|km2}}) being named the [[Markermeer]]. Construction of this dike, known later as the ''[[Houtribdijk]]'' or '''Markerwaarddijk''', progressed slowly, lasting from 1963 to 1975, after which it also served as an important road connection between the north of North Holland and the eastern Netherlands. The Houtribdijk did not, however, result in the construction of the rest of the Markerwaard, as many had hoped.

The debate on whether to build the Markerwaard continued for years. The need for new agricultural land had mostly disappeared by this time and extra space for housing was unnecessary in this region. The existing ecological and recreational value of the Markermeer was considered by many to be equal or superior to any potential such value the Markerwaard would offer. Doubts began to surface about the cost-effectiveness of the polder. The original post-war designs had called for a {{cvt|410|km2}} polder, yet many different proposals were later put forth in an effort to combine the benefits of both the Markerwaard and Markermeer, all to no avail. Although [[cabinet (government)|cabinets]] had intended to proceed with the Markerwaard, it was decided to indefinitely postpone the project in September 1986. A proposed alternative was to use the lake as a water reservoir for hydropower combined with wind-power from windmills on the dikes, eliminating the unpredictability of the latter{{spnd}}when there is an overcapacity of wind, use that to fill the lake and when there is not enough, use the high water level for hydro power.

In 2012, plans emerged to create the [[Marker Wadden]],<ref>[https://zoek.officielebekendmakingen.nl/stcrt-2013-10683.html Intentieverklaring Marker Wadden, Rijkswaterstaat], Dutch government bulletin, April 2013</ref> a group of islands designed to establish nature reserves in the north of the Markermeer. Contrary to the Markerwaard, no permanent human occupation is planned, although it will be accessible to tourists and [[ornithology|birdwatchers]]. The creation process started in April 2016 with the first new island being inaugurated on 24 September 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nos.nl/artikel/2134152-een-nieuw-stukje-nederland-de-marker-wadden-zijn-open.html|title = Een nieuw stukje Nederland: De Marker Wadden zijn open| date=24 September 2016 }}</ref>