SUNDAYS RIVER CANAL COMPLETED WITHIN SCHEDULE
Published: May 16, 2025<< BACK TO NEWS
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15 May 2025
SUNDAYS RIVER CANAL COMPLETED WITHIN
SCHEDULE
The final
repair work of the Sundays River Canal by the Department of Water and
Sanitation has been completed within schedule, giving a guarantee of a reliable
water supply from the Algoa Water System.
The Sundays
River Canal provides approximately 60% of the Metro's water consumption. The
Canal originally collapsed on 17 May 2017, prompting the implementation of
temporary earthworks and HDPE lining to maintain water flow.
This temporary
solution remained in place for over four years, posing a significant risk to
the assurance of sustainable supply.
Permanent
rehabilitation began in June 2024 through a collaboration between the
Department of Water and Sanitation and the Sundays River Irrigation Board. Two
previous shutdowns were conducted to initiate tie-in work, but additional
repairs became necessary to secure downstream slabs at the canal’s tie-in
point.
Mayoral
Committee Member for Infrastructure and Engineering, MMC Buyelwa Mafaya,
thanked the residents of Nelson Mandela Bay for responding to her call of a
decreased water usage during the repair process.
"We did envisage
the work to be completed within the scheduled time frames, we thank our
residents for decreasing their water consumption during this time. The
decreased water usage did mitigate the impact of water shortages during this time,”
said MMC Mafaya.
During the 10-day repair period, the Municipality had reconciled all available water resources and augmented supply from alternative sources to reduce the risk of disruptions.
The Director
for Water and Sanitation, Barry Martin confirmed that the repair work was
completed. "The water distribution is back to normal, and the reservoirs are
filling up, an exercise that will take about five days. However, power outages
have affected water transfer to, Bethelsdorp and Chelsea reservoirs due to
power outages. We humbly request people supplied through these reservoirs to
use water sparringly,” said Martin.
During the
shutdown, the Nooitgedagt scheme could only supply 70 million litres commonly
known as megalitres per day, compared to the usual 250 megalitres.
Ends.
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