Operation and Maintenance
After construction the ecobasins have been monitored for a period of three years.
Reasons for monitoring are to analyse:
- The risks of adverse effects
- The performance (according to expectations)
- Increased understanding of functioning (scientific and practical understanding).
Strategies
The monitoring covered a period of four years, from 2008 until 2012. Each year the results have been reported. No strategies exist for the specific maintenance of the basins as they form part of the dike. Dike maintenance is part of standard procedures of the Waterboard.
End of life
The ecobasins will have a long life-span, under the assumption that they are properly inspected and maintained. It is possible to re-use the stones and the asphalt for a new dike toe or other projects, if need be.
The basins may be prone to siltation, destruction by ice, leakage or vandalism. If a specific maintenance plan exists, the plan has address who is in charge of the basins functioning, who is legally responsible and who is bearing the costs of maintenance. Another concern may be that unattended visitors may get injured while visiting the basins, because this intertidal zone is mostly slippery because of algae growth. This may require a specific warning sign concerning risks of injury by the legal owner of the basins.