Minimal change in water allocation despite rising dam levels

Despite the water levels in the Kouga Dam increasing to 34.47 percent, after the annual water restriction negotiations with the Department of Water and Sanitation and various other stakeholders which took place on Friday, June 30, it has been decided that there will be minimal change in the water allocation for agricultural and domestic usage.

According to Rienette Colesky, CEO of Gamtoos Irrigation Board, after the annual water restriction negotiations on Friday, June 30, it has been decided that agricultural users will be restricted with 65 percent of their water allocation from the Kouga Dam, and they will then receive a water allocation of 35 percent.

Domestic usage has been restricted to 30 percent and will receive a water allocation of 70 percent.

As previously reported by Kouga Express, at the water restriction negotiations which were held last year, the agriculture sector was restricted to an 80 percent water allocation while domestic usage was restricted to 65 percent.

“When the restrictions have been gazetted, we will be bound by these restrictions,” said Colesky.

She said that since the dam levels which are measured on June 1 each year ahead of the annual water restriction negotiations, it is unfortunate that the increase of almost 10 percent from 23 percent on June 1 to 32.43 percent on June 30 was not taken into consideration.

“The largest increase in dam levels occurred over the last month,” said Colesky.

In terms of anticipation of rain, she said that many people follow various rain predicting platforms which are not always very accurate.

Colesky said that while cleaning the canal system recently, they found that there was much more rain for the Kouga region than was predicted, which has been a great improvement.

She said that the catchment areas were previously battling to fill up, but have now been bursting at the seams, which has resulted in the increase in dam levels.

Colesky said that during the rainy season, which is generally from August to November, they have noticed an increase of several percent in dam level storage.

She said that the Kouga Dam has often become the “face of the drought” for the public at large.

Colesky said that in many ways people think that an increase in the Kouga Dam has a positive effect on the drought and the restrictions.

She said that during full allocation years the Kouga Dam only allocated about 27 percent to the NMBM while the Impofu Dam, which was decommissioned in January this year, is nearly as big as the Kouga Dam and allocated 100 percent to the metro.

Colesky said that the Churchill Dam also allocated 100 percent to the metro.

“It might be that we have done quite a bit of social media communication about the Kouga Dam, that it has created the perception that the dam is the face of the drought,” said Colesky.

She said that people feel hopeful because the dam levels are rising; however, this only means there will be a slight increase in water allocation for agricultural and domestic usage.

Colesky said that only if the Kouga-Loerie system rises above 65 percent, then all restrictions on the Kouga Dam will be lifted.

“Let’s hope that by the end of November the Kouga Dam will be overflowing.”