Over half of South Africa’s public dams, including the biggest — the 5,3-billion cubic metre Gariep Dam — do not fully comply with modern-day safety standards, the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry said on Wednesday.
”As at October [last year], 160 of the 294 dams owned by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry do not comply with current dam safety standards,” the department said in a statement.
While this did not necessarily mean these dams were unsafe, ”it means that some components of the dams are in need of rehabilitation in order to maintain their structural integrity”.
This latest figure of 160 out of 294 dams not meeting current safety standards is the same as that given by the minister of water affairs and forestry in a written reply to a parliamentary question on February 9 last year.
Replying on Wednesday to questions sent to it by the South African Press Association, the department said South Africa’s seven largest dams were among those in need of repair.
These, in order of maximum water-holding capacity, are:
- the Gariep Dam, which requires about R3-million of work for ”the repair of silt and river outlets”;
- the 3,1-billion cubic metre Vanderkloof Dam (also on the Orange River), which requires R30-million in repairs, and where ”the bridge deck [is] not safe”;
- the 2,6-billion cubic metre Sterkfontein Dam, south of Harrismith, which requires only ”very minor repairs … [including the] inlet tower needing to be stabilised”;
- the 2,6-billion cubic metre Vaal Dam, where R18-million is needed to replace outlet pipes;
- the 2,4-billion cubic metre Pongolapoort Dam, in KwaZulu-Natal, where R15-million is needed due to ”insufficient spillway capacity and [to] repair road crest surface”;
- the 1,2-billion cubic metre Bloemhof Dam in North West, where ”repairs include toe-drain manholes and slope protection”, at a cost of R7-million; and
- the 480-million cubic metre Theewaterskloof Dam in the Western Cape, which requires R1-million to fit an access bridge to the inlet tower.
In its reply, the department said the repairs listed above ”are just some of the issues that have been identified in the list of dams you inquired about”.
It also noted that in order to tackle its repair and maintenance backlog, it had started a Dam Safety Rehabilitation Programme (DSRP) in April 2005.
”National Treasury approved R1,25-billion over a period of five financial years, starting from April 1 2006, specifically for this purpose. Dams were prioritised and 42 projects are currently between the planning and construction phases.
”The department has also embarked on an infrastructure asset-management programme, which will ensure that systems are put in place in order to continuously maintain our infrastructure in the long term.”
The department said it was important to note that the majority of the dams it managed were more than 50 years old.
”In addition, some dams built in the former homelands previously need to be modified to meet acceptable safety standards,” it said. — Sapa