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How to: make a polder

■    The Netherlands lies on the edge of the North Sea and is very fiat.

■    Around 24 percent of the land is below sea level, and was once covered with water.

■    Land reclamation began 700 years ago and is still going on today.

B Dikes are built to hołd back the sea, creating areas of reclaimed land called polders.

■    Polder land is very fertile and is used for intensive farming.

B Large cities, such as Amsterdam and Rotterdam, are built on reclaimed land.

B Rising sea levels due to global warming increase the danger of flooding

I ■ First, choose a suitable place parallel to the shoreline to make your polder.

Build a dam, or dike, to hołd back the sea and start pumping out the water from the land side.

VW ■ When the polder is ready, plant marram grasses on it to absorb the salt and to hołd the soil together.

■ Dig canals to keep the polder drained of water. You can now build your house on dry land