Identify locations in Section B and C, and rivers Z and X. Describe the steps in the creation of polders in the Netherlands.

Large earthen walls (dikes) are built around the area of the sea or lake to be reclaimed, isolating it from the main body of water.

Powerful pumps, historically windmills and now electric pumps, are used to pump water out of the enclosed area into surrounding canals or directly back into the sea. This process can take several months or even years.

The newly exposed land is initially saline. Rainwater is allowed to leach the salt out of the soil over several years, sometimes aided by planting salt-tolerant crops like reeds.

Once the soil is sufficiently desalinated and dry, canals are dug for drainage, roads are built, and the land is prepared for agriculture, settlement, or other uses.