KZN facing worst drought since 1982

ponder said:
The catchment areas are well covered by the rain & then there's also the snow that still has to melt.

We had over 150mm here since last night and that was before the heavens opened up properly this afternoon. The ground was saturated & water just pooled everywhere.
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The snow melt will help a lot over the next few weeks.
 
KZN drought far from over

Pietermaritzburg - The good rain received over the weekend does not mean the drought is over, authorities have warned.

Umgeni Water spokesperson Shami Harichunder said there had been little impact on the levels of major dams.

He said Midmar Dam recorded 48,8 mm of rainfall over the two days, which was the most rain received in six months, but the dam level remained at a stable 45%.

Harichunder said the Midmar level could be unchanged as it is a large dam and rain run-off would make “no noticeable difference”.

“Much of the rain already received has been absorbed into parched ground. Consequently, there was no or little run-off into the dam through the river feeder system,” he said.

Harichunder added that it would take at least 48 hours for the bulk of run-off to make its way into the dam.

“It is estimated that on average between 10% and 20% of rain makes its way into a river system. Therefore, a clearer picture of the impact of rainfall on the level of Midmar Dam will emerge in 48 hours,” he said.
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More at: http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/kzn-drought-far-from-over-20160725
 
I see Hazelmere went up a lot today, its currently sitting at 50% was 45% yesterday. Must of been a nice amount of run off.
 
Unhappy438 said:
I see Hazelmere went up a lot today, its currently sitting at 50% was 45% yesterday. Must of been a nice amount of run off.
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TBH, not really..

Hazelmere is a tiny dam, so the increase of 5% would have equated to around 895m litres of water.

That is not very much considering the 50mm of rainfall and the size of the catchment area.
 
ToxicBunny said:
TBH, not really..

Hazelmere is a tiny dam, so the increase of 5% would have equated to around 895m litres of water.

That is not very much considering the 50mm of rainfall and the size of the catchment area.
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Yeah but what im saying is the rain itself accounted for a 3% increase whilst the run off has so far accounted for a 5% increase. Thats if we are to trust Umgeni waters measurements.

At the end of the day though we need another round of rain like we just had soonish to actually break the drought in some areas.
 
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Unhappy438 said:
Yeah but what im saying is the rain itself accounted for a 3% increase whilst the run off has so far accounted for a 5% increase. Thats if we are to trust Umgeni waters measurements.

At the end of the day though we need another round of rain like we just had soonish to actually break the drought in some areas.
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No, we don't need another round of rain like that... it caused more damage than good...
 
#‎Drought‬ In order to stabilize the water at the Wiggins supply system, the City is currently installing water restrictors, reducing the flow and pressure and implementing planned restrictions to all affected properties. Water restrictions will start from tomorrow, 11 August from 9pm to 4am every day. Check out the schedule here

Water restriction schedule for Wiggins supply system

http://www.durban.gov.za/City_Services/water_sanitation/Documents/DROUGHT.pdf
 
^^^

And there is talk of removing water restrictions once it hits 60%. I think that would be retarded in the extreme. Ease water restrictions yes, but remove them no. We need to wait until the rainy season actually has hit us properly.
 
ToxicBunny said:
^^^

And there is talk of removing water restrictions once it hits 60%. I think that would be retarded in the extreme. Ease water restrictions yes, but remove them no. We need to wait until the rainy season actually has hit us properly.
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Yeah its at something like 50% currently correct? Perhaps 25% would be a better idea.
 
eMdloti’s water-restricted residents fight back

THE situation reached boiling point earlier today as dozens of eMdloti residents prevented City officials from switching of their reservoir valves in protest to the ongoing water restrictions. It has been nearly a year since the restrictions were first implemented at the coastal village, and now the residents say they have had enough.

The group parked two of their vehicles over the valves at the main traffic circle, opposite the taxi rank. When City officials arrived they refused to move and demanded answers with regards to the restrictions. Officials eventually left the site without switching off the valves.

“Everybody else has water. They can wash their cars while me must shower with buckets to conserve as much water as we can,” said Monique Broughton, a 2nd Avenue resident.

Restrictions are still being implemented twice a day from 9am to 4pm and 9pm to 4am.
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More at: http://northglennews.co.za/90970/water-restricted-residents-fight-back/
 
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