On the small Caribbean island of Saba, Dutch water and maritime expertise is helping tackle several challenges at once: limited freshwater availability, exposure to hurricanes, difficult logistics, and the need to protect a vulnerable marine environment.
At the center is the new Black Rocks Harbor, which is being constructed by Dutch company Ballast Nedam International Projects on behalf of the Public Entity Saba. As part of the project, Elemental Water Makers, a Dutch water technology company, has delivered a decentralized desalination system that gives the construction site its own reliable freshwater supply.
According to Ballast Nedam, water supply is only one element of a much wider resilience challenge.
Saba depends heavily on maritime connections for goods, transport and economic activity. Following the damage caused by hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, plans for the harbour grew from renovation to the construction of an entirely new, hurricane-resistant facility.
Ballast Nedam International Projects is responsible for the marine works. These include dredging, harbor infrastructure and the construction of a large breakwater using heavy Xbloc concrete blocks designed to withstand severe sea conditions and hurricane-force waves.
The main maritime components are scheduled for completion in December 2026. The design has undergone extensive wave modelling and testing.
Public Entity Saba said that the resulting breakwater will be almost twice the size of that of the existing harbor, helping raise the level of protection required under extreme conditions.
The project is also an example of how international expertise can be combined with local and regional knowledge, Ballast Nedam concluded.