| VOËLVLEI DAM: Western Cape |
| W Cape | E Cape | N Cape | Gauteng | KZN | Mpumalanga | Free State | Northwest | Limpopo |
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Catchment: |
Water coarse (River): |
Voëlvlei River |
Capacity: |
158.6 mil.cub.m | |||||||||||||||||||
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Type of wall: |
Date constructed: |
1952 |
Owner: |
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Map |
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| Notes: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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About 6km south of Gouda is Voelvlei ("bird-marsh") Dam, an important element in the complex water supply system of the Western Cape. What was originally little more than a muddy marsh was converted into a dam in 1952 to augment and control the water delivered by the Berg river to places such as Saldanha and Vredenburg near its mouth on the west coast. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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The dam impounds 16 million cubic meters behind a 17.7 m wall to form a lake 8 km long and 1.5 km wide. During the rainy season water is diverted into the dam from several streams in the neighbourhood, including the Little Berg River. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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In summer water is fed into the Berg River to secure supplies to places as far away as Cape Town. Voelvlei supports a large colony of birds ( hence the name). It is also well stocked with bass. (Ref1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| References: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ref 1 | On Route in South Africa - BPJ Erasmus | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Useful links: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (Dam information and levels) | ||||||||||||||||||||||