Editing Western Scheldt

{{Short description|Estuary of the Scheldt river}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Designation list
| designation1 = Ramsar
| designation1_offname = Westerschelde & Saeftinghe
| designation1_date = 9 April 1995
| designation1_number = 748<ref>{{Cite web|title=Westerschelde & Saeftinghe|website=[[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar]] Sites Information Service|url=https://rsis.ramsar.org/ris/748|access-date=25 April 2018}}</ref>}}
[[File:LocatieWesterschelde.png|300px|thumb|Western Scheldt (''Westerschelde'')]]
[[File:Zeeland_van_boven.jpg|thumb|right|Satellite image of the Scheldt delta showing the Western Scheldt at low tide]]
The '''Western Scheldt''' ({{langx|nl|Westerschelde}} {{IPA|nl|ˌʋɛs.tərˈsxɛl.də||audio=Nl-Westerschelde.ogg}}), in the province of [[Zeeland]] in the southwestern [[Netherlands]], is the [[estuary]] of the [[Scheldt]] river. This river once had several estuaries, but the others are now disconnected from the Scheldt, leaving the Westerschelde as its only direct route to the sea. The Western Scheldt is an important shipping route to the [[Port of Antwerp]], [[Belgium]]. Unlike the [[Eastern Scheldt]] estuary, it could not be closed off from the sea by a dam as part of the [[Delta Works]]. Instead, the dykes around it have been heightened and reinforced.<ref name="ley196110">{{Cite magazine
|last=Ley
|first=Willy
|date=October 1961
|title=The Home-Made Land
|department=For Your Information
|url=https://archive.org/stream/Galaxy_v19n06_1961-08#page/n65/mode/1up
|magazine=Galaxy Science Fiction
|pages=92–106
}}</ref>

Over the years, many ships have sunk in the Western Scheldt. Following an agreement between the Dutch and Belgian governments in 1995, many of the wrecks have been removed to improve shipping access to Antwerp. It was expected that the last 38 wrecks in the shipping channel would be removed during 2003. The largest wreck, which was removed in June 2003, was that of the {{convert|131|m|ft|adj=on}} long ''[[Alan-A-Dale]]'', sunk in December 1944 during the [[World War II|Second World War]] by a German ''[[Biber (submarine)|Biber]]'' [[midget submarine]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Warsailors.com :: Ship Forum :: Re: Alan-a-dale, sunk by Biber |url=http://www.warsailors.com/forum/archive/forum/read.php-1,51,53.html |access-date=2024-09-15 |website=www.warsailors.com}}</ref>

The Western Scheldt was freed from German occupation in October and November 1944 by the [[First Canadian Army]] during [[the Battle of the Scheldt]].

Recently, the Western Scheldt has been exploring the concept of "wisselpolders"<ref>{{Cite web|last=Buiter|first=Rob|date=2021-01-25|title=Het geheim van de wisselpolder: een alternatief voor het ophogen van dijken|url=https://www.trouw.nl/gs-b1c4da8a|access-date=2021-03-12|website=Trouw|language=nl-NL}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Kustverdediging tussen dubbele dijken: veilige, natuurlijke en goedkopere oplossing|url=https://www.wwf.nl/wat-we-doen/actueel/nieuws/dubbele-dijken-veilige-natuurlijke-goedkopere-oplossing|access-date=2021-03-12|website=WWF.nl|language=nl}}</ref> or "exchange polders", a [[Sedimentation enhancing strategies|sedimentation enhancing strategy]], to offset [[land loss]], enhance [[Flood control|flood safety]] and create new land. One example is the Perkpolder project.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Perkpolder|url=https://www.perkpolder.nl/|access-date=2021-03-12|website=www.perkpolder.nl}}</ref>

==Western Scheldt Tunnel==
{{Main|Western Scheldt Tunnel}}
In mid-March 2003, a {{convert|6.6|km|adj=on}} [[tunnel]] under the Western Scheldt opened, the Western Scheldt Tunnel, running from Ellewoutsdijk in the municipality of [[Borsele]] ([[Zuid-Beveland]]) to  [[Terneuzen]] in [[Zeelandic Flanders]]. It is the longest road tunnel in the Netherlands. The toll (2012) is €5 for [[automobile|cars]] and €2.50 for [[motorcycle]]s. Prior to 2011, the charge for motorcycles was the same as for cars, but it was reduced following protests. The single toll station for both directions is on the north bank. Pedestrians, cyclists, and moped riders are not allowed in the tunnel and must travel through it by bus.

==Ferry==
The double-decker car ferries that serviced the two Western Scheldt crossings until 2003 were sold to Italian companies. The Queen Beatrix (renamed ''Tremestieri'') and Prince Johan Friso (renamed ''Acciarello'') were adapted for the crossing between [[Messina]] and [[Villa San Giovanni]] on the Italian mainland.

With the opening of the road tunnel, the [[Breskens]]-[[Vlissingen]] [[ferry]] was restricted to pedestrians and cyclists. It is operated by Westerschelde Ferry BV, a subsidiary of the province of [[Zeeland]]. The service initially used former car ferries, but as of 2 May 2004 it employs two "[[Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull|small waterplane area twinhulls]]" (swaths, similar to [[catamaran]]s), built at the Royal Schelde Group in Vlissingen (Flushing), and named ''Prins Willem Alexander'' and ''Prinses Máxima''.

Upstream, the [[Kruiningen]]-Perkpolder ferry was discontinued without replacement.

== See also ==
* [[Eastern Scheldt]]
* [[Zeeschelde]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.bba.nl/1/35/36/ Ferry]
*[http://www.westerscheldetunnel.nl/index.cfm?language=en Tunnel]
*[http://www.zeeland.nl/uploaded_files/1123_oversteek_westerschelde.pdf Ferry and Tunnel] (in Dutch, pdf, 1MB)

{{Coord|51|24|N|3|43|E|region:NL-ZE_type:waterbody_source:dewiki|display=title}}
{{Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta]]
[[Category:Estuaries of the Netherlands]]
[[Category:Rivers of Zeeland]]
[[Category:Scheldt basin|0Westernscheldt]]
[[Category:Walcheren]]
[[Category:Zeelandic Flanders]]
[[Category:Zuid-Beveland]]
[[Category:Transport in Reimerswaal]]
[[Category:Transport in Vlissingen]]
[[Category:Ramsar sites in the Netherlands]]
[[Category:Rivers of the Netherlands]]