Less nature and forest area in the Netherlands

The amount of built-up area – land for housing, industry and infrastructure – has increased by 277 square kilometers (3.4 percent). This increase has been at the expense of the area of ​​natural and agricultural ecosystems. The decrease in agricultural area was greater in square kilometers (178) than the decrease in nature and forest areas, but relatively smaller (0.9 percent compared to 2.5 percent).

Nature and forest areas mainly changed into built-up and agricultural areas. However, new nature and forest areas also emerged from mainly agricultural areas. On balance, more nature and forest areas have been converted into built-up and agricultural areas than the other way around.

Within the nature and forest areas, the area of ​​natural grassland has decreased the most at 131 square kilometers, followed by forest areas (-36 square kilometers) and dune and coastal areas (-21 square kilometers). In contrast, heathland and drifting sand areas as well as swamp and peat areas increased by 15 square kilometers.

Nature has declined the most in South Holland

The decline in nature and forest areas is not evenly distributed regionally. The area of ​​nature and forest areas has decreased most in the provinces of South Holland (60 square kilometers) and Fryslân (44 square kilometers). In Drenthe, Overijssel, North Brabant and Limburg, the area of ​​nature and forest areas increased between 2013 and 2022.

Gelderland has the most nature

In 2022, Gelderland had the largest area of ​​nature and forest area. Relatively speaking, Overijssel had the largest agricultural area and South Holland the largest built-up area. Fryslân had the largest area of ​​water, partly because a large part of the Wadden Sea falls within the Frisian provincial borders.

Almost half of the Netherlands is an agricultural area

In 2022, more than 45 percent of the surface of the Netherlands would be agricultural. The Netherlands consists of more than a quarter (10.7 thousand square kilometre) from arable and horticultural areas. Nature and forest areas are the smallest main group with almost 16 percent of the land area. Within this, forest areas are the most common nature reserves. Built-up areas will cover more than 20 percent of the total area of ​​the Netherlands in 2022.