Van Zutphen spoke there with residents, with representatives of Dorpsbelangen, the village association, and with mayor Anno Wietze Hiemstra. According to the municipality of Aa en Hunze, residents are struggling with the way the Commissie Mijnbouwschade, the body that deals with mining damage, assesses and settles their claims: they find the damage reports incomprehensible and the cost of calling in experts high, and they feel a lack of recognition and fairness.
The visit was a first exploration, but according to Hiemstra, Van Zutphen has promised to look into the matter and to see what he can do with central government. The municipality says that what he heard in Ekehaar resembles what came to light earlier about mining damage in Groningen.
