Rural services: the key for territorial development
Rural contractors are vital to the rural communities and industries with which they are involved. Thanks to the wide range their services, they help rural areas to prevent & overcome difficulties as well as supporting their economic development.
Contractors indeed carry out important work for public authorities (municipalities), so that they can meet safety requirements on the roads, and maintain paths, roads and waterways.
The unpredictable weather of the last few years has shown on several occasions that, in severe winter weather conditions, the traffic grinds to a complete halt, if you cannot rely on outside snow clearing or gritting services. Many contractors have specialised in path and waterway maintenance.
In addition, these contractors take care of all kinds of green spaces throughout the year. Whether they maintain sports fields, mow grass verges or cut the trees along our roads or apply mulch to vast areas of non-cultivable land, these businesses have the required expertise when it comes to the necessary planning, experience and techniques.
In the Netherlands only, each year, rural contractors:
- mow more than 10,000 kilometers verges along roads;
- maintain more than 140,000 kilometers of ditches and waterways;
- operate for 70 percent of all earthmoving work in the Netherlands;
- ensure that 10,000 hectares of sports fields are ready to be used.
In many cases, land-based contractors represent the largest employers' group in rural areas.
This is a sample of pictures to illustrate the activities operated by land-based contractors in rural areas.
