The downpours of last week brought both tears and joy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Joy because our dams have risen, tears because of the large-scale damage which was caused by the stormwater, wreaking havoc across the bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But another tragedy is that all the rainwater and flow-off water of the Berg River and Wemmershoek dams will now be washed to sea in torrents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As seen with the drought faced last decade, the dams feeding our taps are not sufficient to see us through the dry spells. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Both the Wemmershoek and Berg River dams feed huge communities and are just not big enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Theewaterskloof, the largest dam in the Western Cape, was constructed way too shallow, and so much of its water evaporates during the hot summer months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All these harsh factors have led to an investigation into the releasing of water too late and\/or too quickly from the Wemmershoek and Berg River dams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the heavy rains, landowners and the local municipality feel that if water was released earlier, and more gradually, the scale of flooding would not have been as extreme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Water is such a valuable commodity, one that none of us can do without. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The downpours of last week brought both tears and 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