Deputy Ellentrees Müller said at a meeting of the Provincial States committee that festivals and other activities at camping and recreation park Netl, in and around Marknesse and Kraggenburg, can continue despite stricter rules linked to military drone testing. This is possible if activities comply with the provincial environmental regulations, agreements are made with the Mobility and Infrastructure Test Centre (MITC), and the municipality of Noordoostpolder grants any required permits. The regulations limit the number of people in areas where drone tests take place; a test cannot proceed if there are too many people present.

The Council of State recently rejected Noordoostpolder’s decision to allow an expansion of Netl, ruling that drone testing at the National Air and Space Centre, which is to become part of the MITC, served the national interest. Müller said that the importance of the MITC outweighed recreational interests, while stressing that activities were not automatically ruled out. The province said it was willing to resume discussions with the municipality within the regulatory framework. Netl has meanwhile applied for a permit for a smaller expansion involving 100 camping pitches and possibly fewer buildings and accommodation units.