Question: Do you think Netherlands is going to be underwater by 2045

George Foden answered on 7 Jan 2026:

That is a difficult question to answer, because a lot of our climate modelling data might suggest that sea levels would rise, and countries like the Netherlands are low-lying and therefore at risk of rising water levels, but they are also doing a lot of work to prepare and protect themselves from these potential risks.

The Netherlands has a lot of flood defence systems (some of the best in the world) because they are aware of these risks. Some of these defences include sea walls that keep the water out, and flood plains and canals that can be drained so that rising water levels can be managed.

They also have some really interesting projects that are exploring how to continue agriculture if and when farmland might be flooded with sea water, by developing salt-tolerant agriculture process and growing crops that won’t be damaged as badly by sea water. This is alongside more traditional flood defences to ensure that as much land as possible is protected from sea level rise.

Overall, I think it is fair to say that without mitigation and adaptation to rising sea levels, then large parts of the Netherlands could be underwater by 2045, but in reality there are a lot of very important building projects and flood-resilience programmes in place to make sure that people will be protected from the risk of flooding.