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{{Short description|Dutch engineer (1893–1959)}}
{{more footnotes|date=November 2018}}

{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = Johan van Veen
| name = Johan van Veen
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| honorific_suffix =
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| image = Johan van Veen (1953).jpg
| image = Johan van Veen (1953).jpg
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| caption = Johan van Veen (1953)
| caption = Johan van Veen (1953)
| birth_name =
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| birth_date = {{birth date|1893|12|21|df=y}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1893|12|21|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Uithuizermeeden]], [[Netherlands]]
| birth_place = [[Uithuizermeeden]], Netherlands
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1959|12|9|1893|12|21df=y}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1959|12|9|1893|12|21|df=y}}
| death_place = [[The Hague]], [[Netherlands]]
| death_place = [[The Hague]], Netherlands
| body_discovered =
| body_discovered =
| death_cause = heart attack during train trip
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| nationality =
| nationality = Dutch
| ethnicity =
| citizenship =
| citizenship =
| other_names =
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| notable_works = [[Delta Works]]
| notable_works = [[Delta Works]]
| style =
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| occupation = [[Civil engineer]]
| occupation = [[Civil engineer]]
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'''Johan van Veen''' ([[Uithuizermeeden]], 21 December 1893 – [[The Hague]], 9 December 1959) was a Dutch hydraulic engineer and is considered the father of the [[Delta Works]].
'''Johan van Veen''' ([[Uithuizermeeden]], 21 December 1893 – [[The Hague]], 9 December 1959) was a Dutch [[hydraulic engineering|hydraulic engineer]]. He is considered the father of the [[Delta Works]].


==Education ==
==Education ==
Johan van Veen was born as the fifth child in a farmers family of seven children. He was the brother of Marie van Veen, married to the artist [[Johan Dijkstra (kunstenaar)|Johan Dijkstra]]. After high school he started his studies in 1913 in [[Delft]] at the [[Technische Universiteit Delft|Technische Hoogeschool van Delft]]. He studied [[civil engineering]]. He graduated in 1919 as "ingenieur" (=M.Sc. in engineering).
Johan van Veen was the fifth child of seven in a farming family. He was the brother of Marie van Veen, married to the artist [[Johan Dijkstra (artist)|Johan Dijkstra]]. In 1913, after high school graduation, he started his studies in [[Delft]] at the [[Technische Universiteit Delft|Technische Hoogeschool van Delft]]. He studied [[civil engineering]]. In 1919, he graduated as "ingenieur" (equivalent to M.Sc. in engineering).<ref>Van der Ham (2003), ch. 1</ref>


==Provincial water authority Drenthe==
==Provincial Water Authority Drenthe==
After his graduation he started to work for the drainage department of the provincial water authority of the province of [[Drenthe]]. The task of this department was to develop plans to improve the drainage and the road structure of the province in order to enlarge the yield of agriculture and to transport the products in a more efficient way to the market (in the western part of the Netherlands). During the first World War it became clear the Netherlands depended too heavy on the import of food products from abroad. Therefore in the years between the World Wards a lot of attention was paid to the agricultural production. In order to have a good basis for plans, the borders of watersheds were charted, discharge measurements were made and levelling of the valleys and the adjacent higher grounds were executed. He did this work in cooperation with the agricultural engineering F.P. Mesu (who graduated in [[Wageningen_University_and_Research |Wageningen]]).
Van Veen worked as an engineer for the Drainage Department of the Provincial Water Authority of the Province of [[Drenthe]]. The task of this department was to develop plans to improve the drainage and road structure of the province. In turn, this would enlarge the agricultural yield and to transport the products in a more efficient way to the markets (in the western part of the Netherlands).

During [[World War I]], it became evident that the Netherlands depended too strongly on food products from abroad. The interwar years were focused on agriculture. In order to have solid grounds for such plans, the borders of watersheds were charted, discharge measurements were made and leveling out valleys and the adjacent higher grounds works were executed. Van Veen carried out these studies in cooperation with agricultural engineer F.P. Mesu (who graduated in [[Wageningen University and Research|Wageningen]]).<ref>Van der Ham (2003), ch. 2</ref>


==Surinam==
==Surinam==
In 1926 Van Veen left the Provincial Water Authority. From August 1926 to October 1928 he worked in [[Surinam]] at the Surinaamse Bauxiet Maatschappij (Surinam Bauxite Company), a subsidiary of the later US company [[Alcoa]] in [[Moengo]], Surinam.
In 1926, van Veen left the Provincial Water Authority. From August 1926 to October 1928, he worked in [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Surinam]] at the Surinaamse Bauxiet Maatschappij (Suriname Bauxite Company), later a subsidiary of [[Alcoa]], in [[Moengo]], Suriname.<ref>Van der Ham (2003), ch. 3</ref>


==Rijkswaterstaat==
==Rijkswaterstaat==
After his return to the Netherlands in 1929, he got a position at [[Rijkswaterstaat]] (the executive agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure). He became head of the newly created research department for the tidal rivers and estuaries. His first assignment was to improve the hydraulic conditions at the Hellegat, a complicated bifurcation of estuary branches.
In 1929, after his return to the Netherlands, van Veen held a position at [[Rijkswaterstaat]] (the Executive Agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure). He became head of the newly created Research Department for Tidal Rivers and Estuaries. His first assignment was to improve the hydraulic conditions at Hellegat, a complicated bifurcation of estuary branches. He also developed a new method to calculate tides, an improvement on the formulas developed by [[Hendrik Lorentz]] on the closure of the [[Zuiderzee]].
⚫
He published his Ph.D. thesis on sand movement in the [[Strait of Dover]] (which was relevant for Dutch coastal morphology), based on extensive measurements in that area. He wrote many (Dutch) reports on the coasts, tidal movements, estuaries and salt intrusion.<ref name="Tresor">{{cite web |title=Publications of Johan van Veen |url=https://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/auteur.php?code=M&naam=vVeen |access-date=2021-07-24 |website=Trésor der Hollandsche Waterbouw |publisher=[[Stichting Blauwe Lijn]] |language=nl}}</ref>
He also developed a new method to calculate tides, an improvement of the formulas developed by [[Hendrik Lorentz]] for the closure of the [[Zuiderzee]].

⚫
He wrote a Ph.D. thesis on the sand movement in the [[Strait of Dover]] (which was relevant for the Dutch coastal morphology), based on extensive measurements in that area. He produced many (Dutch) reports on the coast, tidal movement, estuaries and salt intrusion.
In the years before and during the Second World War Johan van Veen performed many studies on the problem of salt intrusion into the tidal rivers. During the War he prepared a plan called "verlandingenplan" to manipulate the tidal rivers in such a way that quite some natural silting up would take place, and reclaiming this new land would become easy. Just after the war he presented this plan again, but because at that moment focus in the country was not on reclaiming land, but on repairing war damage.
In the years before and during [[World War II]], van Veen executed many studies on the problem of salt intrusion into tidal rivers. During the war, he prepared a plan called "Verlandingsplan" to manipulate tidal rivers in such a way that natural silting-up would take place, and that to reclaim this new land would be easy. Just after the war, he presented this plan again, but mainly because at that time the country focused rather not on reclaiming land, but on repairing war damage.<ref>Van der Ham (2003), ch. 4</ref>


==Delta Plan==
==Delta Plan==
From 1937 onwards Van Veen warned about the bad condition of the Dutch flood defences. He made clear that a disaster was imminent, but politically there was no support for his warnings. Main reason was that improvement of the dikes would cost a lot of money, which was not available in the Netherlands just after the war (the country depended mainly on money from the [[Marshall Plan]]. He had already published a book on the history of Dutch Hydraulic Engineering [Dredge, Drain Reclaim] and in later printings of this book he added a chapter by "Dr. [[Cassandra]]" including these warnings. His final warning was a document describing the risks, including a plan to improve the situation by closing some estuaries. This document was dated 31 January 1953.
From 1937 onward, van Veen warned about the deplorable condition of the Dutch flood defences. He stipulated that a disaster was imminent, but politically he found no support for his warnings, the main reason being that improvement of dikes would cost a lot of money, which was not available in the Netherlands just after the war (the country depended mainly on money from the [[Marshall Plan]]).

In the next night the Netherlands was struck by the biggest storm surge ever, the [[North Sea flood of 1953]]. After the disaster a State Commission was installed (on 18 February 1953), where Johan van Veen was appointed as secretary of the commission. In May 1953 the commission came with the first interim report, recommending closing the [[Hollandse IJssel]] with a storm surge barrier [[Flood barrier]] immediately, and elaborate the plan of Van Veen to close the estuaries (the [[Delta Works]]). Eventually this work was done, the final report of the commission was published in 1960, one year after the death of Johan van Veen. In the Netherlands Johan van Veen is remembered as the "father of the Delta Plan".
In 1939, [[Pieter Jacobus Wemelsfelder]], a colleague of van Veen, published a paper in the journal {{lang|nl|de Ingenieur}} ''(English: The Engineer)'' that was the first to apply statistical methods to the occurrence of storm surges.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wemelsfelder |first=P. J. |date=1939 |language= nl |title=Wetmatigheden in het optreden van stormvloeden |trans-title= Regularities in the occurrence of storm surges |url=https://repository.tudelft.nl/record/uuid%3A664ee1f2-e045-4e8b-a81d-c26fc3633766 |journal=De Ingenieur |volume=54 |issue=9 |pages=B31-35}}</ref> His research suggested a shift in design approach, moving away from basing flood design on the highest observed flood level towards designing for a flood with a calculated probability. In the same year, van Veen conducted a factor analysis of storm surges for the first time. His work explored how changes in river run-off, river channel geometry, and [[sea level rise]] affected the design flood. Despite these studies focusing on different aspects of storm surges, they arrived at the same conclusion: that the delta region of The Netherlands faced significant dangers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=van Veen |first=J. |date=1939 |title=Te verwachten stormvloedstanden op de benedenrivieren : eerste voorlopige becijfering |trans-title=Expected storm surge levels on the lower rivers: first preliminary calculation |url=https://open.rws.nl/open-overheid/onderzoeksrapporten/@119625/verwachten-stormvloedstanden/ |access-date=2023-04-01 |website=Rijkswaterstaat Publicatie Platform |language=nl}}</ref> Since 1938, van Veen had been working on plans to mitigate these risks. He proposed constructing a dike ring for four islands, a storm surge barrier in the [[Lek (river)|Lek]], and a high ring of dikes around [[Dordrecht]].

Van Veen published a book in English on the history of Dutch Hydraulic Engineering (''Dredge, Drain, Reclaim, the Art of a Nation'').<ref name="DredgeDrain">
{{cite book
|last=Van Veen
|first=Johan
|date=1962
|title=Dredge, Drain, Reclaim, the Art of a Nation
|pages=200
|location= The Hague, Netherlands
|publisher= Matinus Nijhoff
|url=http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a7fe541b-692d-497a-8ea3-ca4e9a6ef482}}
</ref> In later reprints of this book he added a chapter by "Dr. [[Cassandra]]" as he used this pseudonym, including these warnings. His final warning report was a study describing the risks, including a plan to improve the situation by closing some estuaries. This document was dated January 29, 1953.
During the following night The Netherlands were struck by the biggest storm surge ever, the [[North Sea flood of 1953|North Sea flood of February 1st, 1953]]. After the disaster a State Commission was installed (18 February 1953), and Johan van Veen was appointed Secretary of the State Commission.

In May 1953, the commission offered its first interim report, recommending immediate closure of the [[Hollandse IJssel]] with a storm surge barrier [[Flood barrier]], and to implement Van Veen's plan to close the estuaries (the [[Delta Works]]). Eventually this work had been carried out; the final report of the commission was published in 1960, one year after Johan van Veen died. In The Netherlands Johan van Veen is remembered as the "father of the Delta Plan" and in England as "Master of the Floods".<ref>Van der Ham (2003), ch. 8</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Maris |first=A.G. |date=1955 |title=The Sealing Operation on the Zeeland Coast |url=https://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/doi/10.1680/iicep.1955.11427 |journal=Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers |language=en |volume=4 |issue=6 |pages=809–827 |doi=10.1680/iicep.1955.11427 |issn=1753-7789 |access-date=13 August 2023}}</ref>


==Inventions==
==Inventions==
Johan van Veen made a number of inventions. Notable are the [[Van Veen Grab Sampler]], a device to take (disturbed) bed samples from the seabed (around 1930). Also he is the inventor of the [[pneumatic barrier]] to prevent salt intrusion (around 1940). In 1930 he proved the analogy between electricity and water flow and from this principle he developed an [[analog computer]] to calculate tidal flow (electric analogon). It became operational in 1944-1946. Later this machine was updated and became the practical computer to calculate tidal flow and water levels in the Dutch Delta (to predict the effect of closure works, the [[Delta Works]]. This analog computer got the name [[Deltar]].
Johan van Veen has a number of inventions to his name. Notable is the [[Van Veen Grab Sampler]], a device to take (disturbed) bed samples from the seabed (around 1930).<ref>Van Veen (1936), p164-166</ref> He is also the inventor of the [[pneumatic barrier]] to prevent salt intrusion (around 1940).<ref>Van Veen (1941)</ref> In 1930, he proved the [[Hydraulic analogy|analogy between electricity and water flow]]. From this principle he developed an [[analog computer]] to calculate tidal flow (electric analogon).<ref>Van Veen (1937)</ref> In the period 1944-1956 it had become operational. Later on this machine was updated and became the practical computer to calculate tidal flow and water levels in the Dutch Delta to predict the effect of closure works, the [[Delta Works]]. This analog computer now bears the name [[Deltar]].<ref>Rooijendijk 2009, p347</ref>


==Personal life and death==
==Private==
Van Veen married on May 5th, 1927 during his stay in Surinam with Hendrika (Henny) Aalfs . He had three children. Unfortunately the marriage was not very happy.
On May 5, 1927, van Veen married Hendrika ("Henny") Aalfs during his stay in Suriname. They had three children. Unfortunately, their marriage was not very happy.
Although he came from a [[Dutch Reformed Church]]-family, he converted to [[Christian Science]], following his sister Anna, who lived in the United States. Van Veen suffered from a number of heart attacks. The first in 1937 and later in 1948 a heavy one after his "four island plan" was rejected. His last, fatal attack was in 1957 in the train when he was travelling to a meeting regarding the planning of a new harbour near [[Delfzijl]], the [[Eemshaven]].
Although he came from a [[Dutch Reformed Church]] family, he converted to [[Christian Science]] until 1937, following his sister Anna, who lived in the United States.<ref>Van der Ham (2003), p24</ref>
Van Veen suffered from a number of heart attacks, the first one in 1937 and later in 1948 a heavy one after his "four-island-plan" was rejected. In 1959 he had his last, fatal attack in the train when on his way to a meeting regarding his plan of a new harbour near [[Delfzijl]], the [[Eemshaven]].<ref>Van der Ham (2003), p228</ref>


==Publications (in English)==
==Publications (in English)==
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:be27faa7-c09c-4e98-a1b5-1ddcaaea23e1 Sand waves in the North Sea] Hydrographic review, Vol. XII, No. 1 (May 1935)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:be27faa7-c09c-4e98-a1b5-1ddcaaea23e1 Sand waves in the North Sea] Hydrographic review, Vol. XII, No. 1 (May 1935)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:efde6799-a49d-42e3-ac94-9d7cd4e774d1 Measurements in the Straits of Dover, and their relation to the Netherlands coasts] (1935) PhD thesis Utrecht University
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:efde6799-a49d-42e3-ac94-9d7cd4e774d1 Measurements in the Straits of Dover, and their relation to the Netherlands coasts] (1935) PhD thesis Utrecht University
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/water-movements-in-the-straits-of-dover Water movements in the Straits of Dover] J. of Marine Research Vol. 13, no. 1 (1938) ; p. 7-36
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/water-movements-in-the-straits-of-dover Water movements in the Straits of Dover] J. of Marine Research Vol. 13, no. 1 (1938); p.&nbsp;7-36
* [http://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/S/BER037.pdf The analogy between tides and electrical currents] Rijkswaterstaat BER037,
* [http://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/S/BER037.pdf The analogy between tides and electrical currents] Rijkswaterstaat BER037,
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:e66ed3f0-a349-44a7-b548-ccb6785aba70 Analogy between Tides and A.C. Electricity] The Engineer, dec 1947 (pp 498, 520. 544)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:e66ed3f0-a349-44a7-b548-ccb6785aba70 Analogy between Tides and A.C. Electricity] The Engineer, dec 1947 (pp 498, 520. 544)
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* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a7fe541b-692d-497a-8ea3-ca4e9a6ef482 Dredge, Drain Reclaim] (5th edition, 1960) Martinus Nijhof
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a7fe541b-692d-497a-8ea3-ca4e9a6ef482 Dredge, Drain Reclaim] (5th edition, 1960) Martinus Nijhof
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:5c300a66-c108-4dd3-a90b-c059f3950df7 Ebb and flood channel systems in the Dutch tidal waters] Bilingual version of a paper published in 1950 in the Journal of the Dutch Geographic VII. 67, 1950, 303-325
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:5c300a66-c108-4dd3-a90b-c059f3950df7 Ebb and flood channel systems in the Dutch tidal waters] Bilingual version of a paper published in 1950 in the Journal of the Dutch Geographic VII. 67, 1950, 303-325
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:642568fa-eb5b-4051-a1a8-e07383d51166 Tidal Gullies in youngest peat layer of Groningen] Proc. Int. Congress Sedimentology, Netherlands (1951) pp.257-266
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:642568fa-eb5b-4051-a1a8-e07383d51166 Tidal Gullies in youngest peat layer of Groningen] Proc. Int. Congress Sedimentology, Netherlands (1951) pp.&nbsp;257–266
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a21d6ecd-6c2b-4871-85d7-15836a4a0430 Coasts, estuaries and tidal hydraulics] Chapter from the "Civil Engineering Reference Book", edited by E.H. Probst and J. Comrie 1951 (pp1071-1106)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a21d6ecd-6c2b-4871-85d7-15836a4a0430 Coasts, estuaries and tidal hydraulics] Chapter from the "Civil Engineering Reference Book", edited by E.H. Probst and J. Comrie 1951 (pp1071–1106)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:b674bac2-8b7f-4176-94dd-74d9fca5185f English and Dutch methods of shore protection (correspondence on a article with R.R. Minikin)] The Dock and Harour Authority, May-June 1952
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:b674bac2-8b7f-4176-94dd-74d9fca5185f English and Dutch methods of shore protection (correspondence on an article with R.R. Minikin)] The Dock and Harour Authority, May–June 1952
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:9bfbcc5f-97a4-49c3-a78c-736c202b98d6 discussion on: "Application to an hydraulic problem" (by Glover, Herbert & Daum)] transactions ASCE,1953 vol 118, pp1010-1028
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:9bfbcc5f-97a4-49c3-a78c-736c202b98d6 discussion on: "Application to an hydraulic problem" (by Glover, Herbert & Daum)] transactions ASCE,1953 vol 118, pp1010–1028
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/land-below-sea-level-holland-in-its-age-long-fight-against-the-w Land below sea level : Holland in its age-long fight against the waters] 1953 Boucher, The Hague
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/land-below-sea-level-holland-in-its-age-long-fight-against-the-w Land below sea level : Holland in its age-long fight against the waters] 1953 Boucher, The Hague
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:0507fb2b-b6ec-439c-9d63-fc271a0282e2 Tide-gauges, subsidence-gauges and floodstones in the Netherlands] Geologie en Mijnbouw, 1954 (16) pp 214-219 (Symposium quarternary changes in level, especially in the Netherlands)
* [http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:0507fb2b-b6ec-439c-9d63-fc271a0282e2 Tide-gauges, subsidence-gauges and floodstones in the Netherlands] Geologie en Mijnbouw, 1954 (16) pp 214–219 (Symposium quaternary changes in level, especially in the Netherlands)
* [http://hydrologie.org/redbooks/a038/038014.pdf Development of marine plains, penetration of sea water in Dutch tidal rivers and inland waters] 1957 Pub. 38 IAHR conf Rome (111)
* [http://hydrologie.org/redbooks/a038/038014.pdf Development of marine plains, penetration of sea water in Dutch tidal rivers and inland waters] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019040904/http://hydrologie.org/redbooks/a038/038014.pdf |date=2018-10-19 }} 1957 Pub. 38 IAHR conf Rome (111)
* Necessity of subsidence-gauges Publ. Dutch Geodetic Society for the UGGI congress 1957
* Necessity of subsidence-gauges Publ. Dutch Geodetic Society for the UGGI congress 1957
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/the-rotterdam-waterway-considered-as-a-rivermouth The Rotterdam waterway considered as a rivermouth] "De Ingienieur, 1958, nr 28
* [http://publicaties.minienm.nl/documenten/the-rotterdam-waterway-considered-as-a-rivermouth The Rotterdam waterway considered as a rivermouth] "De Ingienieur, 1958, nr 28


For a full list of all his publications (mainly in Dutch) is referred to the Tresor of [http://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/auteur.php?naam=vVeen Dutch Hydraulic Engingeering].
For a full list of all his publications (mainly in Dutch) is referred to the Tresor of [http://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/auteur.php?naam=vVeen Dutch Hydraulic Engingeering].

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}


==References==
==References==
* {{Aut|Rooijendijk, Cordula}}, ''Waterwolven: een geschiedenis van stormvloeden, dijkenbouwers en droogmakers'', Amsgterdam, Uitgeverij Atlas, 2009 {{ISBN|9789046703380}}
* {{cite book |last=Rooijendijk |first=Cordula |date=2009 |title=Waterwolven: een geschiedenis van stormvloeden, dijkenbouwers en droogmakers |trans-title=waterwolves, a history of storm surges, dike builders and reclaimers |language=Dutch |publisher=Uitgeverij Atlas |isbn=9789046703380}}
* {{Aut|Willem van der Ham}}, ''Meester van de zee. Johan van Veen (1893-1959), waterstaatsingenieur'', Amsterdam, Uitgeverij Balans, 2003, {{ISBN|9050185959}}
* {{cite book |last=Van der Ham |first=Willem |date=2003 |title=Meester van de zee. Johan van Veen (1893-1959), waterstaatsingenieur |trans-title=Master of the Sea. Johan van Veen (1893-1959), Engineer at Rijkswaterstaat |language=Dutch |publisher=Uitgeverij Balans |isbn=9050185959}}
* {{cite thesis |last=Van Veen |first=Johan |date=1936 |url=http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:ff2232a5-948b-44e3-8f0b-ecfb653c77e1 |title=Onderzoekingen in de hoofden |trans-title=Research in the Strait of Dover |language=Dutch|publisher=Utrecht University}}
* {{cite journal |last=Van Veen |first=Johan |date=7 May 1937 |title=Getijstroomberekeningen met behulp van wetten analoog aan die van Ohm en Kirchhoff |trans-title=Calculation of tidal current using laws analog to those of Ohm and Kirchhoff |url=https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=dts:2980065:mpeg21:0001 |language=Dutch |journal=De Ingenieur |volume=52 |issue=19 |pages=B73–B81}}
* {{cite journal |last=Van Veen |first=Johan |date=7 March 1941 |title=Twee middelen om het zoutbezwaar bij zeesluizen op te heffen| trans-title=Two methods to solve the salt-intrusion problems at navigation locks |url=http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:c8fc9fbf-7649-4736-b2c1-ea5c58cd70e2 |language=Dutch |journal=De Ingenieur |volume=56 |issue=10 |pages=B33–B34}}

==External links==
* [https://www.kennisbank-waterbouw.nl/tresor/auteur.php?naam=vVeen/ Stichting Blauwe Lijn: Johan van Veen] Extensive repository of publications by van Veen


{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:van Veen, Johan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:van Veen, Johan}}

Revision as of 01:46, 20 November 2024

Johan van Veen
Johan van Veen (1953)
Born(1893-12-21)21 December 1893
Uithuizermeeden, Netherlands
Died9 December 1959(1959-12-09) (aged 65)
The Hague, Netherlands
Alma materDelft University of Technology
OccupationCivil engineer
EmployerRijkswaterstaat
OrganizationGovernment
Notable workDelta Works

Johan van Veen (Uithuizermeeden, 21 December 1893 – The Hague, 9 December 1959) was a Dutch hydraulic engineer. He is considered the father of the Delta Works.

Education

Johan van Veen was the fifth child of seven in a farming family. He was the brother of Marie van Veen, married to the artist Johan Dijkstra. In 1913, after high school graduation, he started his studies in Delft at the Technische Hoogeschool van Delft. He studied civil engineering. In 1919, he graduated as "ingenieur" (equivalent to M.Sc. in engineering).[1]

Provincial Water Authority Drenthe

Van Veen worked as an engineer for the Drainage Department of the Provincial Water Authority of the Province of Drenthe. The task of this department was to develop plans to improve the drainage and road structure of the province. In turn, this would enlarge the agricultural yield and to transport the products in a more efficient way to the markets (in the western part of the Netherlands).

During World War I, it became evident that the Netherlands depended too strongly on food products from abroad. The interwar years were focused on agriculture. In order to have solid grounds for such plans, the borders of watersheds were charted, discharge measurements were made and leveling out valleys and the adjacent higher grounds works were executed. Van Veen carried out these studies in cooperation with agricultural engineer F.P. Mesu (who graduated in Wageningen).[2]

Surinam

In 1926, van Veen left the Provincial Water Authority. From August 1926 to October 1928, he worked in Surinam at the Surinaamse Bauxiet Maatschappij (Suriname Bauxite Company), later a subsidiary of Alcoa, in Moengo, Suriname.[3]

Rijkswaterstaat

In 1929, after his return to the Netherlands, van Veen held a position at Rijkswaterstaat (the Executive Agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure). He became head of the newly created Research Department for Tidal Rivers and Estuaries. His first assignment was to improve the hydraulic conditions at Hellegat, a complicated bifurcation of estuary branches. He also developed a new method to calculate tides, an improvement on the formulas developed by Hendrik Lorentz on the closure of the Zuiderzee. He published his Ph.D. thesis on sand movement in the Strait of Dover (which was relevant for Dutch coastal morphology), based on extensive measurements in that area. He wrote many (Dutch) reports on the coasts, tidal movements, estuaries and salt intrusion.[4]

In the years before and during World War II, van Veen executed many studies on the problem of salt intrusion into tidal rivers. During the war, he prepared a plan called "Verlandingsplan" to manipulate tidal rivers in such a way that natural silting-up would take place, and that to reclaim this new land would be easy. Just after the war, he presented this plan again, but mainly because at that time the country focused rather not on reclaiming land, but on repairing war damage.[5]

Delta Plan

From 1937 onward, van Veen warned about the deplorable condition of the Dutch flood defences. He stipulated that a disaster was imminent, but politically he found no support for his warnings, the main reason being that improvement of dikes would cost a lot of money, which was not available in the Netherlands just after the war (the country depended mainly on money from the Marshall Plan).

In 1939, Pieter Jacobus Wemelsfelder, a colleague of van Veen, published a paper in the journal de Ingenieur (English: The Engineer) that was the first to apply statistical methods to the occurrence of storm surges.[6] His research suggested a shift in design approach, moving away from basing flood design on the highest observed flood level towards designing for a flood with a calculated probability. In the same year, van Veen conducted a factor analysis of storm surges for the first time. His work explored how changes in river run-off, river channel geometry, and sea level rise affected the design flood. Despite these studies focusing on different aspects of storm surges, they arrived at the same conclusion: that the delta region of The Netherlands faced significant dangers.[7] Since 1938, van Veen had been working on plans to mitigate these risks. He proposed constructing a dike ring for four islands, a storm surge barrier in the Lek, and a high ring of dikes around Dordrecht.

Van Veen published a book in English on the history of Dutch Hydraulic Engineering (Dredge, Drain, Reclaim, the Art of a Nation).[8] In later reprints of this book he added a chapter by "Dr. Cassandra" as he used this pseudonym, including these warnings. His final warning report was a study describing the risks, including a plan to improve the situation by closing some estuaries. This document was dated January 29, 1953. During the following night The Netherlands were struck by the biggest storm surge ever, the North Sea flood of February 1st, 1953. After the disaster a State Commission was installed (18 February 1953), and Johan van Veen was appointed Secretary of the State Commission.

In May 1953, the commission offered its first interim report, recommending immediate closure of the Hollandse IJssel with a storm surge barrier Flood barrier, and to implement Van Veen's plan to close the estuaries (the Delta Works). Eventually this work had been carried out; the final report of the commission was published in 1960, one year after Johan van Veen died. In The Netherlands Johan van Veen is remembered as the "father of the Delta Plan" and in England as "Master of the Floods".[9][10]

Inventions

Johan van Veen has a number of inventions to his name. Notable is the Van Veen Grab Sampler, a device to take (disturbed) bed samples from the seabed (around 1930).[11] He is also the inventor of the pneumatic barrier to prevent salt intrusion (around 1940).[12] In 1930, he proved the analogy between electricity and water flow. From this principle he developed an analog computer to calculate tidal flow (electric analogon).[13] In the period 1944-1956 it had become operational. Later on this machine was updated and became the practical computer to calculate tidal flow and water levels in the Dutch Delta to predict the effect of closure works, the Delta Works. This analog computer now bears the name Deltar.[14]

Personal life and death

On May 5, 1927, van Veen married Hendrika ("Henny") Aalfs during his stay in Suriname. They had three children. Unfortunately, their marriage was not very happy. Although he came from a Dutch Reformed Church family, he converted to Christian Science until 1937, following his sister Anna, who lived in the United States.[15]

Van Veen suffered from a number of heart attacks, the first one in 1937 and later in 1948 a heavy one after his "four-island-plan" was rejected. In 1959 he had his last, fatal attack in the train when on his way to a meeting regarding his plan of a new harbour near Delfzijl, the Eemshaven.[16]

Publications (in English)

For a full list of all his publications (mainly in Dutch) is referred to the Tresor of Dutch Hydraulic Engingeering.

Notes

  1. ^ Van der Ham (2003), ch. 1
  2. ^ Van der Ham (2003), ch. 2
  3. ^ Van der Ham (2003), ch. 3
  4. ^ "Publications of Johan van Veen". Trésor der Hollandsche Waterbouw (in Dutch). Stichting Blauwe Lijn. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  5. ^ Van der Ham (2003), ch. 4
  6. ^ Wemelsfelder, P. J. (1939). "Wetmatigheden in het optreden van stormvloeden" [Regularities in the occurrence of storm surges]. De Ingenieur (in Dutch). 54 (9): B31-35.
  7. ^ van Veen, J. (1939). "Te verwachten stormvloedstanden op de benedenrivieren : eerste voorlopige becijfering" [Expected storm surge levels on the lower rivers: first preliminary calculation]. Rijkswaterstaat Publicatie Platform (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-04-01.
  8. ^ Van Veen, Johan (1962). Dredge, Drain, Reclaim, the Art of a Nation. The Hague, Netherlands: Matinus Nijhoff. p. 200.
  9. ^ Van der Ham (2003), ch. 8
  10. ^ Maris, A.G. (1955). "The Sealing Operation on the Zeeland Coast". Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 4 (6): 809–827. doi:10.1680/iicep.1955.11427. ISSN 1753-7789. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  11. ^ Van Veen (1936), p164-166
  12. ^ Van Veen (1941)
  13. ^ Van Veen (1937)
  14. ^ Rooijendijk 2009, p347
  15. ^ Van der Ham (2003), p24
  16. ^ Van der Ham (2003), p228

References

  • Rooijendijk, Cordula (2009). Waterwolven: een geschiedenis van stormvloeden, dijkenbouwers en droogmakers [waterwolves, a history of storm surges, dike builders and reclaimers] (in Dutch). Uitgeverij Atlas. ISBN 9789046703380.
  • Van der Ham, Willem (2003). Meester van de zee. Johan van Veen (1893-1959), waterstaatsingenieur [Master of the Sea. Johan van Veen (1893-1959), Engineer at Rijkswaterstaat] (in Dutch). Uitgeverij Balans. ISBN 9050185959.
  • Van Veen, Johan (1936). Onderzoekingen in de hoofden [Research in the Strait of Dover] (Thesis) (in Dutch). Utrecht University.
  • Van Veen, Johan (7 May 1937). "Getijstroomberekeningen met behulp van wetten analoog aan die van Ohm en Kirchhoff" [Calculation of tidal current using laws analog to those of Ohm and Kirchhoff]. De Ingenieur (in Dutch). 52 (19): B73–B81.
  • Van Veen, Johan (7 March 1941). "Twee middelen om het zoutbezwaar bij zeesluizen op te heffen" [Two methods to solve the salt-intrusion problems at navigation locks]. De Ingenieur (in Dutch). 56 (10): B33–B34.
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