‘Get metro’s old dams back on stream’
● Fixing existing infrastructure more cost-effective than new schemes, says water expert
The Nelson Mandela Bay municipality needs to bring its original dams online to augment the metro’s water supply.
That is the view of former metro water supply and distribution manager David Raymer, who said the two Van Staden’s dams could add a small but important volume to the metro’s parched water grid.
“A lot of money is being set aside for new projects and we should rather first fix the infrastructure that we already have,” he said.
“For instance, with the proposed new Coega desalination plant we will be spending R20m to get one megalitre a day while the two Van Staden’s River dams could deliver three megalitres a day for much less money.”
The Upper Van Staden’s Dam is situated near the top end of the Van Staden’s River between Eland’s River Road and the N2 and the Lower
Van’s Staden’s Dam is situated downriver on the southeast point of Longmore Forest.
The lower dam was completed in 1881 and the upper dam in 1893.
Dams on the Bulk and Sand rivers northwest of Van Staden’s were completed in 1907.
Raymer said yesterday extraction from the two Van Staden’s dams had come to a standstill in 2008 with theft of the cast iron pipes, repeated leaks and insufficient funds to fix them.
A recent inspection revealed that water-sapping alien wattle trees were starting to establish themselves around the Upper Van Staden’s Dam and both showed minor signs of flood damage from years past, he said.
“But the dams themselves are as sound as they were when they were built.
“We should prioritise refurbishing the lines to these dams and reactivating them before we spend large sums of money on new projects.”
In 2018, extraction from the
Bulk and Sand dams was renewed and they were now supplying an extra eight megalitres, he said.
“Seen against the backdrop of the dwindling reserves in our western dams and the crisis facing the Gamtoos Valley farmers and communities if the Kouga Dam dries up, it does beg the question why it took them so long to look at the Bulk and the Sand, and why they have not yet looked at the Van Staden’s dams.”
Raymer said he agreed with the DA that the metro should halt its extraction from the Kouga.
“Yes, we are legally still within our quota on that side but it is irresponsible.
“Day zero is fast approaching for Hankey and Patensie, and if those farms go under there will be a huge lay-off of workers.”
Any improvement in supply had to, however, be supported by reduced consumption in Nelson Mandela Bay, he said.
“In 2016, our consumption was unacceptably high and we managed to bring it right down by mid-2018, but since then we have done a complete U-turn and we’re worse than we have ever been.
“This has nothing to do with increased washing of hands but rather a number of other technical, social and political reasons.”
Shortly after the torrential rain of August-September 2018, then incoming mayor Mongameli Bobani relaxed restrictions.
The result was that residents stopped being vigilant, Raymer said.
“Coupled with that, the metro’s integrated water conservation awareness campaign fell away.
“Recently, they have started running some advertisements on the radio and in the press and on posters in the street, but it is nowhere near the comprehensive campaign we need.”
The metro failed to respond to questions put to it by the time of going to print.