Ah -
the Netherlands. The land of dykes, canals and windmills - and 18.41 per cent water. The Netherlands is the world#39;s fourth most watery nation, behind the Bahamas (27.76 per cent), Guinea-Bissau (22.48 per cent) and Malawi (20.49 per cent).The total area of the Netherlands is 41,526 square kilometres, of which 33,883 square kilometres is land - 27 per cent of it below sea level - and 7643 square kilometres water. Despite the best efforts of nature, the amount of land is increasing, thanks to modern versions of the dykes and windmills for which the country is famous: since the 13th century, 10 per cent of the total land area of the country has been reclaimed from the sea as polders. These are beds of artificial lakes that are bounded by dykes, pumped dry by windmills and drained by canals.However, it#39;s not just the sea that the besieged Dutch battle. The Netherlands lies at the mouth of three major rivers: the Rhine, the Meuse and the Scheldt. Apart from the famous dykes protecting half the land from sleeping with the fishes, other dams and levees along these rivers protect against freshwater flooding.James England, Woodville South, South Australia
