The Mpumalanga Province continues to record slight improvements in water levels. According to the latest Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) weekly state of reservoirs report issued this week, the province’s storage capacity province recorded a slight increase from 95.2% to 95.7%. The Water Management Areas (WMAs) also continue to improve, with the Limpopo-Olifants WMA increasing from 84.0% to 85.7% and the Inkomati-Usuthu WMA increasing from 92.0% to 92.7%.
The three districts of the Mpumalanga Province recorded mixed results, with Ehlanzeni and Nkangala recording improvements from 86.9% to 88.6% and 98.9% to 99.0%, respectively. While the Gert Sibande District recorded a slight drop from 97.6% to 97.5%.
The majority of the listed dams in the Lowveld and Ehlanzeni District recorded improvements in water levels, with the exception of Longmere Dam, which recorded a drop from 98.0% to 96.5%.
The dams which show improvements in water levels include Blyderivierpoort Dam increasing from 100.3% to 101.6%, Buffelskloof Dam from 100.6% to 100.7%, Driekoppies Dam from 85.6% to 86.8%, Klipkopjes Dam from 85.4% to 90.0%, Witklip Dam from 96.8% to 98.9%, Primkop Dam from 95.8% to 100.0%, Kwena Dam from 88.3% to 90.2%, Da Gama Dam from 97.9% to 100.3%, Inyaka Dam from 83.3% to 85.6%, and Ohrigstad Dam from 45.8% to 48.8%.
The listed dams in Gert Sibande District recorded mixed results, with some recording improvements and some dropping in water levels, while Grootdraai Dam remained unchanged at 101.6%.
The listed dams which recorded improvements include Vygeboom Dam, increasing from 100.4% to 100.9%, Jericho Dam from 80.2% to 80.9%, and Westoe Dam from 93.7% to 96.7%.
The dams which dropped in water levels include Nooitgedacht Dam which dropped from 100.3% to 100.0%, Morgenstond Dam from 75.9% to 75.4%, and Heyshope Dam from 101.1% to 100.5%.
In the Nkangala District, Witbank Dam remained unchanged at 99.5%. Middelburg and Loskop dams recorded some improvements, increasing from 97.2% to 98.2% and 101.1% to 101.2%. Rhenosterkop / Mkhombo Dam is the only dam that recorded a decrease in the district, dropping from 95.3% to 95.1%.
Despite the slight improvements, the water levels in the Mpumalanga Province are significantly lower than the same period last year. Therefore, the Department of Water and Sanitation encourages citizens to use water wisely and sparingly, given that South Africa is a water-scarce country, ranked among the top 30 driest countries in the world. The public is further requested to prevent water losses by fixing and reporting leaks.
For more information, contact:
Wisane Mavasa
Spokesperson for the Department of Water and Sanitation
Cell: 060 561 8935
Themba Khoza
Cell: 066 301 6962
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