The water outflows at the Bloemhof dam have been increased to 350.97 cubic metres a second (mᵌ/s) to allow for the extra flows that are expected from Vaal dam following the opening of a single sluice gate last week.
Water levels at the Bloemhof dam are currently at 98.69% and the aim is to keep it at below 100%.
The water levels of the Vaal dam, meanwhile, have reached 107.43%, necessitating the opening of the sluice gate and the release of outflows of between 110 mᵌ/s and 130 mᵌ/s to maintain the dam’s water levels at 105%.
The current water release by the one sluice gate and the pipes at Bloemhof is within the safe operational limits and is not expected to lead to overtopping of riverbanks downstream, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) assured.
The release of water from both dams is owing to the rising of water levels as a result of the continuous rainfall.
The DWS will continue to monitor the water levels at both the dams closely.
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