Tzaneen Dam level drops to a worrying 9%

The Mopani District Municipality has banned the extraction of water for irrigation as the first measure to preserve what little water is left in the region, reports Letaba Herald.

The department of water and sanitation is urging water users in the province to continue to use water sparingly as dam levels continue to decline.

Water levels in the province have dropped due to lack of rain.

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According to a weekly dam levels report released by the department of water and sanitation,the province average dam levels have dropped from 54.4% to 53.8% this week stored water is currently estimated at 818.5 cubic meters for a capacity of 1,522.3 cubic metres.

The dam levels have dropped by 14.5% compared to this time last year.

The water situation in Mopani district has reached an alarmingly low level, with Tzaneen Dam recording at a 9% single digit.

The dam is the main source of water for citrus farmers and domestic consumers in the town, and unless it rains heavily in the next two weeks or so, the town is likely to plunge into a serious drought.

Figures on the summary of Water Management Area (WMA) for the province show that Limpopo is at 61.6%, reflecting a decline compared to last week when water levels were 62.6%. Olifants Dam dropped slightly by 0.9% sitting 52.8% compared to last week at 53.7%.

The report further states that the Polokwane Water Supply Systems dropped to 54.7% from 55.8% last week.

Photo: Benno Stander

The Luvuvhu Water Supply Systems is currently sitting at 87.9% this week, showing a decline compared to last year this period when the reading recorded 98.4%.

The department is encouraging communities in the province to use water sparingly as most dam levels are dwindling.

Nandoni Dam in Vhembe District is declining slowly from 92.1% to 91.6%, while Vondo Dam plummeted from 87.4% to 86.8% Both dams were bursting at the seams this time last year, as they were over 100% capacity.

Ebenezer Dam in Groot Letaba, which supplies majority of the communities around Polokwane, has dropped from 48.8% last week to 47.0% this week.

De Hoop Dam in Steelpoort, which supplies communities of Sekhukhune, is sitting at 80.4% this week compared to last week when it recorded 80.8%, and Flag Boshielo has declined from 58.5% to 57.6%.

The department calls on all water users to use water sparingly and wisely to avert a total water shutdown in their respective areas.

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