Country’s reservoirs remain at comfortable levels week on week
Water levels in the country’s dams have remained steady week-on-week, standing firm at 94,2%.
This was shown in a weekly report on the state of reservoirs in the country issued by the Department of Water and Sanitation this week.
The Integrated Vaal River System (IVRS) remains stable at 100,8% this week, while Algoa, and Bloemfontein Water Supply Systems decreased.
Klipplaat and Luvuvu are the only Water Supply Systems that improved this week, moving to 89,9% (89,7% last week) and 101,5% (101,1% last week) respectively.
The department’s spokesperson Sputnik Ratau says all nine provinces’ water percentages have not moved much since last week, with the Western Cape being the only province to show a significant decline moving to 60,4% from 61,3% last week.
Ratau says Minister Senzo Mchunu will be in the Western Cape on Thursday, leading a site visit at the Brandvlei Water Project, this is in line with the minister’s commitment to ensure that all South Africans have water.
Meanwhile, the drought-stricken Eastern Cape remained at 65,4% this week.
“The minister revisited the province last week to discuss matters with Amatola Water Board. Due to the mismanagement of the board, the minister saw it fit to disestablish it.
“This is to ensure that residents of the Eastern Cape get water and sanitation service delivery without any interruptions,” Ratau said.
Kromrivier and Impofu reservoirs - which are both fed by the Krom River – are at critical levels standing at 17,7% and 11,6% respectively.
Tsojana, Xilinxa and Gubu remain at full capacity.
Sputnik reiterated the call for Eastern Cape residents, along with the rest of the country to use water cautiously.
“We are living in a semi-arid country, which means the demand of water out ways the supply. However, as Water and Sanitation Minister, Mr Senzo Mchunu said before, we are not in a crisis and the matter is manageable as long as everyone plays their part.”
Northern Cape dams jumped significantly to 116% from last week’s 110,5%. Gauteng decreased slightly from 100, 9% to 100,5% this week.
North West water storage levels dropped to 73,4% from last week’s 73,8%. The province’s dam levels were at 82,3% last year at this time. The three main dams in the province are at full capacity this week. Klipvoor drops to 100,7% this week from 103,4%, while Buffelsport Dam remains stable at 100,5% and Bospoort overflows at 101,9%.
Mpumalanga reservoirs inch towards full capacity, however, fall short at 93,0% from 93,2%.
Westoe Dam in Usutu River stands 99,4%. The province’s Nooigedacht drops from 94,3% to this week’s 92,2%. The Kwena Dam remains comfortable at 100,5%.
Water levels in Limpopo stay firm at 87,7%. Flag Boshielo is unmovable at 100,9%, Middel-Letaba is at a very critical at 3,6% and Tzaneen dam inches up to 101,5% from 101,2%.
The biggest dam in Limpopo, De Hoop is at100,2%.
In KwaZulu-Natal, the provincial storage capacity crept up to 89,3% from 88,9%. One of the province’s largest, Albert Falls Dam, which supplies water to the eThekwini Metro and surrounding areas dipped to 101,9% from last week’s 103,1%
The storage capacity in the Western Cape trickled down to 60,4% from 61,3% last week.
Source: Government of South Africa