This phenomenon is also likely in case of the barrier in agricultural fields near the small town of Waddinxveen, east of The Hague — one of the lowest points in the Netherlands — some 5 metres below sea level.

“Because it is so dry right now the peat loses moisture, and because of that it becomes weaker,” Peter Van Duijvendijk, a flood defence manager, told the Associated Press.

“If that peat becomes weaker, then there is a chance that water will flow through the dike and that waterway will drain into the polder,” he said, referring to the reclaimed Dutch land.

A small bridge overlooks a dike in Waddinxveen, Netherlands, Thursday, July 30, 2026, during drought conditions. (AP Photo)

Van Duijvendijk runs a team of 140 volunteers responsible for checking about 100 kilometres of dikes, and reporting any problems, if found. While there have not been any major issues yet, they will continue to remain on alert until fall.

How is dry weather affecting river trade?

Major rivers in Europe are facing low water levels. In the Netherlands, and neighbouring Germany, cargo ships that ply the Rhine river and its offshoots are either being forced to carry much less freight, or risk running aground in shallow navigation channels.

The bed of the Rhine river in Cologne — a major highway for European freight traffic — has dried up. Its water levels on Saturday sank below the record set in October 2018, according to the AP report.

According to Marcel Beck, the manager of the western German ports of Neuss, Dusseldorf and Cologne at RheinCargo — a port and freight transport company — the levels are having a “devastating impact” on shipping, AP quoted.

“A ship that would normally carry 2,000 to 2,500 metric tons of cargo can now only transport 400, perhaps 600, metric tons depending on the ship’s design,” he said.

“This places an enormous burden on the entire transport chain to reorganise everything in order to still get the goods inland,” Beck added.

Houseboats sit in low water on the Waal river in Nijmegen, Netherlands, Thursday, July 30, 2026, due to drought conditions. (AP Photo)

Moreover, houseboat owners have been left with water-borne homes that rests on sandy river beds. In the eastern Dutch city of Nijmegen, a rusted bicycle and shopping cart are exposed on the dried bed of the Waal — the core Dutch arm of the Rhine river — with houseboats left almost high and dry by receding water.

What happens if water levels keep falling?

The Netherlands often finds itself caught in a balancing act of preventing floods during winters and arranging water for crops and canals during the summers.

A groundwater hydrologist, speaking to AP, explained: “It [water] is not evenly distributed over the seasons. In the winters, we drain it away quickly because we want to keep our feet dry and we don’t want water on the land. How can you ensure that you do that slowly and give water time to sink into the ground?”

He suggested adding a hedge near the rivers slows down water, giving it time to seep into the ground.

A parched riverbed on the Lek river near Beusichem, Netherlands, Thursday, July 30, 2026, due to drought conditions. (AP Photo)

Impact on farming

Farmers, too, are warning of smaller fruit harvests and rising costs this season because of the drought.

The low-lying parts of the western Netherlands tend to suffer from salinity during droughts, which presents problems for farmers to grow crops in the fertile soil, AP noted.

Because of the prevailing drought, the water authorities, in an attempt to maintain adequate supplies of fresh water, have banned farmers in a few parts of the country from pumping water out of canals to irrigate their crops.

“It is an extremely challenging year for growers,” John Kusters, chair of the Netherlands Fruit Growers’ Organisation, stated.