The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) will release water from three of the Vaal Dam gates on Thursday as the Vaal surpassed 100% capacity.
River flows from the Upper Vaal area are rapidly filling the Dam, says the department. The flows and upcoming weather forecast have made it possible for a flood control release to happen.
There is a possibility a fourth gate will be opened.
VAAL DAM:
Level Tuesday at 7:00am: 101.5% #vaaldam pic.twitter.com/qSkMNkT7m2— Weather🌩️by AfriWX (@afriwx) February 9, 2021
‘The weather forecasters predict that the wet conditions will continue and this bodes well for our dams. Even those dams that have been in distress for a longest of time, such as the Mohale and Katse, are now beginning to be replenished,’ said DWS’s Spokesperson, Sputnik Ratau.
Both the Vaal and Bloemhof dams are integral parts of the 14 dams that form the Integrated Vaal River System (IVRS). This system is critical for supplying water to key industries in Gauteng, as well as households. The Free State, North West and Mpumalanga are also supplied by the system.
‘Most of the 14 dams in the IVRS are recharging remarkably. One example is the Vaal Dam which was struggling at almost 25% in December 2020 but has since reached 100% this afternoon,’ said the Department on Monday.
The Vaal Dam was at 101.5% on Monday, February 8 but it has since increased to 103.5% as recorded on Wednesday, February 10.
This same time last year, the dam was lower at 56.9%. The Bloemhof Dam has also increased from Monday’s levels of 103.1% to 110.0%.
Image: Twitter
