Significant rainfall over the weekend and early this morning has brought needed relief to the Western Cape dams. According to the latest dam levels assessments of 2 July 2018, , the combined average dam levels for the Western Cape Water Supply System (WCWSS) are at 48.33% as compared to 42.33% last week.
Theewaterskloof Dam, the largest dam in the system has risen to 34.15% % compared to 19.24% at the same time last year. Misverstand dam on the West Coast is at 157.38; Voëlvlei has also improved to 44.66% from 36.27 the previous week. The Clanwilliam dam on the West Coast is also showing an improvement from 57.46% last week to 67.69 this week.
The total storage for Western Cape dams is 41.50%. The South African Weather Services reports snow over of the mountain peaks in the province, with significant rainfall recorded in the province over the past 24 hours. Ceres recorded about 124 mm of rainfall and Grabouw recorded 65 mm. More rain is expected throughout the day in most parts of the province. The Western Cape Department of Water and Sanitation encourages people to take precautionary measures as most areas are experiencing localised flooding. "We welcome rain in the province as it is good for the water security, yet we also encourage people to take extra caution in this time.
Levels of water in the rivers rise and this means people must be careful when crossing these rivers", said Ratau. Following declining water levels in the dams, the department intensified some measures by decreasing the abstraction of water from the WCWSS by 45% for domestic and industries and 60 for agricultural sector. Agricultural use restrictions were raised from 50% to 60%.
These remain in place until a review of the status is done at the hydrological cycle upcoming.
The department is continually monitoring the levels of all dams in the province. The Western Cape receives its water primarily in winter and with this significant rain, there is hope that the dams will recharge faster.
Issued by: Department of Water and Sanitation
