Land use; all categories, municipalities
Explanation of symbols
Table explanation
This table provides information about the land use of the area of the Netherlands and the changes in land use.
Data available from: 1996.
Status of the figures:
The figures in this table are final.
Changes as of 26 April 2023:
Addition of 2017 figures.
This table is based on the Bestand Bodemgebruik (BBG), which literally translates as the ‘land use file’. For intervening base years without a BBG, this table just presents total area statistics for the presented regions.
Previously published base years in this table are never revised for corrections established when a newer BBG-edition is produced. Such corrections consist of corrections of earlier misinterpretations and of improved interpretations based on new sources. The corrections are recorded in the so-called Mutatiebestand (the mutations file) which is a digital map, being a part of each BBG publication. See Bestand Bodemgebruik for further information on correction of the land use statistics and for available publications.
As of reporting year 2016, Statistics Netherlands no longer publishes data on metropolitan agglomerations and urban regions. Various social developments have rendered the philosophy and methodology underlying the delineation outdated. It furthermore appears that other agencies are using a different classification of metropolitan agglomerations and urban regions depending on the area of application. This means there is no longer a consensus on which standard applies.
The metropolitan agglomerations and urban regions will not be published anymore from 2015 onwards as a default regional figure.
When will new figures be published?
After the addition of the 2017 land use figures all updates to this table will be stopped.
The methodology of the land use statistics, as it has been in use up to the 2017-edition, is being redesigned. See for further information on this redesign and the availability of land use statistics based on the new methodology the web page Bestand Bodemgebruik.
Description topics
- Total surface
- Total surface of the Netherlands.
- Transport
- Area in use for traffic and transport on roads, on railways and in the air.
- Transport total
- Total area of the main group ‘Transport’.
- Railroad
- Area in use for traffic and transport on railways.
Including
- slopes;
- dead end rails to industrial area;
- shunting area;
- railway yard including station buildings and adjacent parking areas.
Excluding
- narrow gauge, this is included at the adjacent land use.
- Main road
- Area in use for traffic and transport over the main road network.
Including
- roads with function of transportation artery;
- included green in connections with roads and inside roundabouts;
- parking areas;
- busstation;
- gasoilstation;
- storages for road maintenance.
Excluding
- included green, larger than 1 ha in use of agriculture or woodland;
- included water larger than 1 ha;
- main road under construction.
- Airport
- Area in use for traffic and transport in the air.
Including
- paved and unpaved airstrips;
- associated buildings and parking areas.
Excluding
- unpaved soil inside the enclosed airport (not belonging to airstrips);
- adjacent areas with services and industries.
- Built-up area
- Area in use for residents, work, shopping, cultural facilities and public amenities.
- Built-up area total
- Total area of the main group ‘Built-on area’.
- Residential
- Area mainly used for residents, including primary amenities.
Including
- housing areas;
- primary amenities e.g. (local) shops, primary schools;
- local offices of e.g. banks;
- green areas smaller than 1 hectare;
- streets and local parking areas;
- courtyards, gardens;
- playing grounds;
- trailer camp (excluding wreckage areas larger than 0,1 hectare).
If residential areas are inside woodland, the total area is assignated as residential if a street pattern can be recognized.
- Retail trade, hotel and catering
- Area in use for concentrated retail trade and catering activities.
Including
- shopping centre, often with a pedestrian zone (even if above the shops there are residents);
- markets of goods;
- area with companies in the hotel and catering industry;
- associated parking areas.
- Public institutions
- Area in use of general use, like community homes, police offices and utility services.
Including
- administration buildings;
- municipal offices (stadskantoor), office public works;
- border post (customs etc);
- provincial office;
- police offices, fire brigades, courts, jails;
- utility services (gas, water, electricity, central city heating and central areal parts-constructions) including the associated area;
- water treatment plant and incinerators, including the storage buildings;
- storage areas for the administration, excluding the ones for maintenance of roads;
- militair objects, like depots of ammunition, barracs, mobilisation complexes, radar posts and shooting ranges;
- fort (former);
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Public services are mainly limited on the map by a fence. As the limit of the object, the location of the fence is used.
- Socio-cultural facilities
- Area in use by social and cultural facilities as hospitals, universities and musea.
Including
- secondary schools and schools of applied science;
- boarding school;
- conference centre;
- hospital, sanatorium, nursing home, psychiatrist hospital etc.;
- church, cloister, museum (including castles that are open to the public), excluding open air museum;
- theatre, cinema, concert- and congress hall;
- cultural centre;
- community centre, club house, youth association;
- sheltered workshop;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Social and cultural facilities are mainly limited on the map by a fence. As the limit of the object, the location of the fence is used.
- Industrial area and offices
- Area in use for industry, retail and business services.
Including
- industrial area;
- harbour area;
- auction area;
- exhibition area;
- cattle market (including covered areas);
- wholesale business area;
- area with banks, insurance companies etc.;
- associated storage areas and parking areas;
- garages (including parking areas);
- garage of bus companies;
- offices;
- associated parking areas.
Excluding included non-used areas or areas not yet ready for building or construction, these are assigned to building sites.
- Semi built-up area
- Area with a certain amount of paving, not in use as traffic area or built-up area.
- Semi built-up area total
- Total area of the main group ‘Semi built-up area’.
- Dumping site
- Area for the storage of waste.
Including
- dumping site;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
- Car wreck site
- Area for the storage and scrapping of carwrecks.
Including
- area for the storage and scrapping of carwrecks;
- scrapyard;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Excluding
- area of the scrapping industry.
Minimum size of 0,1 hectare.
- Cemetery
- Area in use for cemeteries and cremations.
Including
- area for the burial of people or animals;
- crematorium;
- associated buildings, parking areas, gardens and forest- or shrublines.
Minimum size of 0,1 hectare.
- Mining area
- Area for winning materials from the bottom or soil.
Including
- area for deep- and shallow extraction of raw materials;
- associated buildings, parking areas, storage areas of extracted materials and waste.
Raw materials include
- natural gas;
- petroleum;
- stone;
- gravel;
- clay;
- loam;
- marl;
- peat;
- sand;
- salt.
Mining areas of natural gas and petroleum are mainly limited on the map by a fence. As the limit of the object, the location of the fence is used.
Minimum size of 0,5 hectare.
- Building site
- Area in use for construction.
including
- area of construction or with preparing traces;
- fallow land on industrial- and office areas.
- Other semi built-up area
- Area of other use with a certain amount of pavement.
including
- a dyke that is not overgrown with grass;
- pier above sea;
- fallow land that can not be recognized as building site;
- railway out of use.
For longitudinal piers and embankments that are connected to the land, the minimum size is 0,1 hectare.
- Recreation
- Area in use for recreation.
- Recreation total
- Total area of the main group ‘Recreation’.
- Park and public garden
- Green area in use for relaxation.
Including
- area within a built-up environment for the public with lawns, playing fields, sunbathing areas, paths, shrubs, flowerbeds and waterponds;
- greenbelts.
Parts of the parks that can be assigned to woodland (also larger than 1 hectare) will be assigned to park and public garden.
- Sport grounds
- Area in use for sport activities.
Including
- area for fieldsport, including trotting and racing, golf area;
- swimming pool, ice skating place;
- sports hall and horse riding school;
- permanent motorcross area (including basic ones);
- associated stands;
- woodland if included in the sport area;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Minimum size of 0,5 hectare.
- Allotment garden
- Area for non-commercial vegetable and flower cultivation.
Including
- allotment gardens ordered in complexes;
- elongated complexes next to railways;
- schoolgardens;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Minimum size of 0,1 hectare.
- Area for daytrips
- Area in use for daytrips like zoos, open air musea and attraction parks.
Including
- camping for only day use;
- zoo and safaripark;
- fairypark;
- amusement park;
- open air museum;
- yacht-basin excluding the water, but including the area of associated industry with a minimum size of 0,1 hectare;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
- natural area with grass or shrubs (not for agriculture and not dry natural open area), designed with footpaths or bikelanes and recreational objects like seats.
Including the categories if they do not belong to park or public garden:
- playing grounds;
- picknick areas;
- deerpark;
- children’s farm;
- miniature golf;
- playing field.
Minimum size for yacht-basins (the land part) of 0,1 hectare.
- Holiday recreation
- Area in use for a recreational residence of several days, like campings, holiday parks and youth hostels.
Including
- camping and caravan area, farmyard campsite;
- area with recreational houses;
- holiday park and holiday houses;
- youth hostel;
- associated parking areas and forest- or shrublines.
Holiday recreation areas are mainly limited on the map by a fence. As the limit of the object, the location of the fence is used.
- Agriculture
- Area for agriculture.
- Agriculture total
- Total area of the main group ‘Agriculture’.
- Greenhouses
- Area in use for agriculture in greenhouses.
Including
- area of the cultivation of plants under glass in greenhouses;
- associated waterbasins.
- Other agricultural usage
- Area for agriculture without glass, like pastures, fields and orchards.
Including
- grassland (hayland and pastures) including the grass growns dikes and river forelands;
- area for cattle breeding;
- orchards, including underplanting, maintenance paths and windbreaks;
- horticulture and arable farming;
- cultivation of small fruits;
- scattered houses with associated yards and gardens, as far as they are in the middle or adjacent to agricultural area;
- natural grassland.
- Woodland and nature
- Area with forest or natural open area.
- Woodland and nature total
- Total area of the main group ‘Woodland and nature’.
- Woodland
- Area with trees for wood production and nature conservation.
Including
- area with trees of which the crowns are a closed entity;
- cutting field;
- fire lane;
- forest path;
- nursery of forests;
- storage of wood;
- scattered houses, if placed inside the woodland;
- poplar fields.
Excluding
- wooded areas of parks;
- forest nurseries that are outside the woodland;
- residential areas (with a pattern of streets) and areas of recreational houses inside the woodland.
- Dry natural open area
- Open area with a dry surface, mainly nature.
Including
- dry heather;
- grasslike natural area (not for agricultural use);
- dunes;
- sand drift;
- sandbar;
- beach.
- Wet natural open area
- Open area with a wet surface, mainly nature.
Including
- wet heather;
- reed and rush (including cultivations);
- salt marsh (not innundated at normal high tides);
- tidal soil, if barren;
- bluegrass land.
Excluding
- osier bed;
- wet woodland.
- Inland water
- Inland water in use as waterway, recreational water, mining area, sewage or sludge farm, water reservoir, including IJsselmeer.
- Inland water total
- Total area of the main group ‘Inland water’.
- IJsselmeer / Markermeer
- The water enclosed at the Afsluitdijk, the Ketelbrug, the Hollandsebrug at Muiderberg and the Oranjesluizen at Amsterdam.
- Enclosed estuary
- From the sea closed estuary. Haringvliet, Hollands Diep (until Moerdijkspoorbrug), Volkerak, Krammer, Grevelingenmeer, Veerse meer and Lauwersmeer.
- Rijn and Maas
- Waters from the river Rhine and the river Meuse, including their tidal riviers.
The area is limited by the Keteldiep (IJssel), the piers of Hoek van Holland (Nieuwe Waterweg) and the railway of the Moerdijkbruggen (Amer), and the transitions of the Dordtse Kil and the Spui of the Haringvliet.
- Randmeer
- The water enclosed by the Hollandsebrug at Muiderberg, the Ketelbrug between the Noordoostpolder and Oostelijk Flevoland, the Kattendiep and the Keteldiep.
- Water reservoir
- Area in use for storing water.
Including
- water storage for drinking water;
- water storage for the industry.
- Water with recreational usage
- Inland water for recreation, like water in parks and golf area’s, rowing tracks and recreational ponds.
Including
- water in parks;
- beachwater, swimming pond;
- recreation pond (surfing, swimming etc);
- water in golf area;
- water in yacht basins;
- rowing course, water ski.
The shores of these areas are at least three quarter a sport ground, an area of holiday recreation, an area for day trips, or park. An exception on this are the rowing courses and water ski.
Minimum size of yacht basins of 0,5 hectare of the water part.
- Water where minerals are extracted
- Inland water for the extraction of minerals like sand.
The water is assigned to this category as long as sand suckers are present.
- Area for storing industrial water
- Area for separing water and sediments, or for storage of (polluted) harboursludge.
Including
- storage area of the segregation of water and sediment;
- storage area of (polluted) harboursludge.
- Other inland water
- Inland water, more broad than six meter, that does not belong to another category of land use.
Including
- waterways (rivers, canals etc);
- lakes;
- ditches;
- harbours, if not yacht basins.
- Tidal water
- Water outside the average high tide.
- Tidal water total
- Total area of the main group ‘Tidal water’.
- Waddenzee, Eems, Dollard
- The water in between the Waddenislands, the Afsluitdijk and the shore of North-Holland, Friesland and Groningen.
- Oosterschelde
- The water in between the Oosterscheldekering, the Grevelingendam, the Philipsdam and the Oesterdam.
- Westerschelde
- The water at the land side of the imaginary line between Vlissingen and Breskens.
- Noordzee
- The water at the sea side of the shore of Zeeland, North-Holland, Zuid-Holland and the Waddenislands.
Only the part of the North Sea is taken that has a municipal assignment.
At the Nieuwe Waterweg, a free into sea streaming river, the division between tidal water and inland water has been made by an imaginary connection between the ending points of the breakwater piers.