The mayor of the seaside resort, Björn Prasse, and the Flemish Minister for Public Works, Lydia Peeters, also officially inaugurated the last section of the storm wall around the marina, as well as movable barriers. All of these infrastructures must better protect the municipality against storms.
Construction began in September 2020. A final section of the storm wall was erected at Barcadère and seven mobile barriers were placed to be able to close the openings in the existing wall in the event of a storm, and thus prevent the center of Blankenberge from being flooded. . New quay walls were also built.
“Climate challenges force us to take many measures. We need to make Flanders a resilient wetland,” commented Minister Peeters.
Work is still planned in the coming months in Blankenberge. The Flemish agency in charge of the Coast (Agentschap Maritieme Dienstverlening en Kust) will start the second phase of construction of the new quay wall in September. In October, a storm wall will be built on the dike. The end of the entire project is scheduled for April 2023.
In addition, the construction of the new breakwater to prevent siltation of the port channel will start in October 2023 at the earliest.