Water Flows From Kaaimans
After an extreme drought in 2006, with the Garden Route Dam at 42% and no end in sight to the drought, it was decided to re-activate the Kaaimans water pump station. The project was completed after an emergency environmental impact study was done and on Friday the completed project was commissioned by Mayor Flip de Swardt and the pumps were put in operation.
According to a press release from Ninham Shand Consulting Services, the George Municipality has an entitlement (waterregte) in terms of the National Water Act (1998) for the water use of an average of 7600m³ of water per day from the Kaaimans River, which was authorized by the 1991 Water Court ruling. The existing weir on the river is constructed downstream of a 7m deep water pool which is connected to the existing pump sump.
The George Municipality has decided to adjust their abstraction to be more environmentally friendly in terms of allowing a 52% environmental reserve flow to continue past the weir undisturbed, with an abstraction of 48% of the flow over the weir.
Six new submersible pumps have been installed as part of the contract. The George Municipality must report to the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry regarding its abstraction of water from the Kaaimans River and to this end, records will be kept of abstraction volumes.
During the November 2007 floods the floodwaters flowed over the weir with a depth of water of 4m, conservatively estimated, this equated to a flow of 250 cubic metres of water per second.
At the ceremony held to mark the occasion, Mayor of George, Flip de Swardt praised Harold Basson, George City Engineer and his team for their far-sightedness in drawing up a Water Provision Plan providing for the growing needs of the town.
According to Basson, the Kaaiman’s water will provide in 25% of the town’s needs. In reply to a question, he said that enough water would still provide enough flow to ensure that the waterfall at Kaaimans Pass area will continue to run.
The water gets pumped from the Kaaimans weir on the Saasveld Campus grounds directly to the Garden Route dam - the town’s main water supply.
*The project cost R13,4-million and will make provision for the sustainability of the needs of a growing town.
