VIOOLSDRIFT AND NOORDOEWER

Vioolsdrift is a small town on the south bank of the Orange River

VIOOLSDRIFT AND NOORDOEWER

Vioolsdrift is a small town on the south bank of the Orange River some 350 km from the river mouth. Noordoewer is the corresponding community on the north bank of the river in Namibia. Since the independence of Namibia from South Africa in 1992 a border post has been established in both Vioolsdrift and Noordoewer although the two communities are closely linked through historical co-operation.

The main development in the area is agriculture and a canal supplies approximately 15 million m³ per annum to the various areas of irrigation. Lucern and vegetables are the main crops - grapes are not grown since the temperatures tend to be too high and the absence of frost prevents the vines from 'hibernating' through the winter months.

The canal is fed from the Vioolsdrift Weir which is located a few kilometers upstream of the river crossing. Although the weir was built primarily to feed the irrigation canal, it is also used for flow measurement and is effectively the last point along the Orange River where a reasonable estimate of the river flow can be obtained.

The possibility of a major dam at Vioolsdrift has been suggested and is currently being investigated by both Namibia and South Africa. It would obviously have to be a joint venture between the two countries and the main purpose would be to control spillage from the Orange River into the Atlantic Ocean. Currently there is no control structure along the Orange River downstream of Vanderkloof Dam - approximately 1 400 km upstream. As a result, if more water than needed by the downstream users is released from Vanderkloof Dam, it will simply run into the ocean and be lost. Similarly any local inflows or spillages from the Vaal River will eventually reach the ocean since there is no storage to capture them for use during periods of shortage. A new dam and reservoir at Vioolsdrift would provide the needed storage with which to control the flows to the river mouth and in so doing, reduce the spillages through the river mouth to only those required for the environment. The picture below indicates one of the numerous possible dam sites upstream of Vioolsdrift.