Call for responsible water use as Vaal Dam levels decline

“Vaal Dam stood at 34.6% last year during the same week. This week, the dam stands at a stable level of 84.6%. This indicates a minor drop from last week’s 85.8%,” the department said on Wednesday, 22 September.

Other dams that have seen a decline this week include the Grootdraai and the Bloemhof.

“The Grootdraai Dam fell from 78.1% last week to 76.8% this week. Despite this week’s decline, the present levels of the dam are in a healthier state compared to the 77.3% the dam recorded at the same time last year.

“The Bloemhof Dam is currently slightly lower at 103.3% as compared to the 104.3% last week, but up from last year’s 93.6% at the same period,” the department said.

The department said the downward trend this week is the Sterkfontein Dam, which is a reserve dam for the Integrated Vaal River System. The dam decreased from 104.3% last week to 103.3% this week. During the preceding year at the same week, the dam was equally stronger when it stood at 93.6%.

Katse and Mohale dam levels continue to decline

Meanwhile, both the Katse and Mohale dams in the neighbouring Kingdom of Lesotho continue to decline week-on-week.

“The Mohale Dam continued to be a cause for concern as it floundered to lower levels. The dam fell from a poor 30.6% to 30.3 %. In the comparative period last year, the dam was at 4.6%,” the department said.

The level of the Katse Dam is continuing to slightly drop as it went from a comfortable 64.6% last week to 64.1% this week. However, this is a huge improvement from last year’s level of 24.8%.

The Integrated Vaal River System (IVRS) , which consists of 14 dams, continues to be in a stable position and to withstand the pressure put on it as a result of some critical dams in the system recording a decline in levels.

“Despite its fall this week, the IVRS is still resilient at 82.6% following a drop from last week’s 83.2%. The system was poorer in the preceding year in the same week when it recorded at 58.3%,” the department said.