The Beervlei dam is between Aberdeen and Willowmore in the Eastern Cape. These "flood control" dams are called "attenuation dams". The mountains in the background are a watershed that collects and directs huge amounts of rainfall into dry valleys that merge shortly before the dam. So flash flooding from storms 50 km upstream is a very real threat. Narrowing large volumes of water from the plains into a narrow valley causes a massive increase in velocity of the water that can scour soils and vegetation in the area as well as flooding into the Kraai river complex. The rapid raise in water levels places Aberdeen etc downstream at risk of flooding and damage. Beervlei dam catches that flood water and "attenuates" or holds it back untill the water level in the Kraai river complex has subsided from local rainfall and is the released at a low volume intensity so as not to flood the entire region. This allows the sometimes heavy storms in the area to subside and then realease the rest behind the dam over a longer period. I am a retired civil engineer living in the area.
Would like your assessment of the short-lived river widening and groine system that cost R18 million..in a very poor community of Genadendal in Overberg..I did see that the groines ..up to 24 of them were river rocks held by wire ..like the sides of Chapman Peak roadway..and capped by a thin layer of dissected concrete slabs..this structure seems inherently insecure for a river structure that does flood often . I'm not sure what they were doing here ..a loche system maybe or crossing points..but even if it didn't flood so badly a month after construction..surely the wire rusts quickly and the rocks move with the water ..and it just falls apart within a year of no floods even . But simply..is it standard to use wire cages of rocks for a river structure like this ..with no cement holding the rocks together in the wire cages ? It failed in the first month..but provincial bridges there were fine..seems R18 million was wasted ..and the reservoir's deterioration was not made a priority..or at all ..now our budget is severely reduced ..for nothing in effect ..seems like municipal manager tender fraud ..bet that was a local construction company that made a profit..using river rocks already there ..and not much else ..bails of wire ..and some concrete slabs..of inferior quality ..that were kept covered by cloth .I'd say this is the biggest crime to affect Genadendal..a double wammmee..when that money was desperately needed for the near collapsing reservoir that has been ignored for 6 years or so .Blatant example of mismanagement and corruption in local municipality of w cape .. Theewaterskloof..run by ANC now .
@user-qm8kj7uc9t exactly Thats why its "attenuation" or "hold back" dams They are not meant for long term water storage They are meant to hold back the rush of water and release it into the system slowly to avoid flood damage downstream Empty is good because they then can store up the design flood from the catchment, typically a 1 : 100 year storm event I would need to look at this dams design philosophy to know what storm event the designers planned for, including the operating manuals that would specify the rate of release in various scenarios, whether a single storm event or a protracted storm
My pleasure thanks for watching and support. It is also thanks to all those folks that have also commented and added value with their knowledge.. well worth a read 📚
Very interesting,we have a very dry country and need to conserve and store as much water as possible.The Zambezi river has more water than all our rivers combined.The pollution of the Vaal dam from collapsed municipal sewerage plants discharging untreated sewerage into the Vaal river is unforgivable.Thank you for an interesting film
I have had the rare privilege of seeing the Beervlei dam completely full 3 times in my life. An amazing sight. But yes, it was not built as a reservoir, but as a flood control dam for areas downstream at risk.
Yes that makes sense..the many varied comments have helped to expand my knowledge..it is all very much appreciated..ìt must have been amazing to see it full
Yep, I went past it several times over 18 years ago and thought much the same and took my kids there to see it. For this visit I did quite a bit of research to get to the bottom of this mystery. Thanks for your support and your comment 👍🏽 much appreciated
One more thing - close to the Beervlei dam towards Aberdeen side, there is the most delightful farm stall just to the east of the road, “Oppivlak Padstal”. Well worth a visit. Best roosterkoek in the country😊
Very informative, great video. I used to live in Cape Town, now living in New Zealand. How is the water released from the dam, I don't see any gates that can control this?
@pulakekana1079 welcome to the channel and as "kid from the karoo" I would love to hear from you as which would be the BEST TOP 10 places to see in the Karoo - I will plan to add some of those suggestions to my next itinerary and so will look forward to your feedback - all the best .
Thanks @dienar3717 👍🏽, sounds like there are more stories to be told and look forward to seeing more about this fascinating dam, so much to discover in South Africa 🇿🇦
Interesting story and very well filmed Having loud background music over your fine voice is not good and complete;y unnecessary. Thanks. Silence is golden.
Great feedback and point well made , thank you..and I will certainly take that advice into consideration for future videos and review those videos already posted by me and out there on RU-vid...thanks for posting comment, much appreciated
@williamsmit619 its tricky in the beginning, but getting levels just right makes the viewing experience great. I work with muso's and sound engineering is an art.
@@Alltakenbla if you can point me in the right direction to learn and pick up tips that would be a great help.. I use Davinci Resolve to edit and GoPro 11 to film.. I have just added the media module and Inkee Gimble . I wanted to improve both "at site" sound recording quality and better picture stability , the media module is an improvement but probably still need further external mic .. that said the mix is a challenge and needs more practice.. thanks for your interest and comments much appreciated
@kambrose1549 yes I agree with you, the best part of travelling on those senic south africa 🇿🇦 roads are the fabulous laybyes - each one is unique and mostly well looked after
The story of the dam I know. But on that same stretch of road, between Willowmore and Aberdeen, about 15-20 minutes from Aberdeen, on the right (comming from Aberdeen) there is a concrete structure next to the road: 6 columns with lintels between them. A seemingly useless structure in the middle of nowhere. I'd love to hear what the story is there.
Good point , many may not remember or it was before their time ..1980 or there about I think...devastating flood with extreme high water in short period devastated the small town and community in a night...I have driven through that town back in 2001..seeing the High water mark in the street is sobering
Lovely adventure video👌 Quick tip with the editing. Try to avoid the crossfade transitions. They have purposes and should only be used for that. The straight cut will let it look more professional. Nevertheless, love the video💫
@JessicaGov thanks for watching and agree with your tip, indeed I over used the crossfade and other unecessary transitions 😬 .which I had tendency to over use ... good to get this sort of feedback I like to hear this as it helps me improve...watch out for the videos I will releasing soon hopefully later this week ...definitely some better editing . I also realised I needed to pay more attention when filming so from early next year I will be releasing the films I am out shooting now...all with better quality picture , better dialogue and better sound and better editing ( thanks for the tip ..please keep them coming very much appreciated )
Very interesting article, however, as I am interested in English dialects spoken in southern Africa, I would like to know the origin of the term "laybye" when referring to a "picnic spot". Is this peculiar to the Eastern Cape, or is it from the UK?
Having grown up in Southern Africa I would say it is probably an older South African English term but not in common use in England now..as with number of South African English terms such as Traffic Circle instead of Roundabout and Robot instead of Traffic light 🚥 😉 ... and interesting study I am sure
Perhaps, but I have never heard it. I am 74. It is also surprising how the internet is changing the language. My grandson wanted to fix our faucet a few months ago! Thanks for the interesting article. I never thought that such a dam could be built just for flood control. Regards.@@williamsmit619
Collins English Dictionary: Definition of 'lay-by' lay-by Word forms: plural lay-bys COUNTABLE NOUN A lay-by is a short strip of road by the side of a main road, where cars can stop for a while. [British] I left my car in a lay-by and set off on foot.
As an Afrikaans speaking South African I have never heared of roadside picnic spots being referred to as "laybyes". We just call them the Afrikaans of picnic spot, or actually, in typical minimalist Afrikaans fashion, we say we will stop inferring that you would know where and why 😊
I would think for this particular dam and this area the sediment has a high salt content and therefore lower top soil value , but very interesting point nevertheless and one I had not thought of before. Thanks for watching and posting a comment, very much appreciated 😀
Not cost effective. Tried it once but it was just too expensive. Perhaps dredging with a barge in some of the silted-up dams in the Freestate could work, as their reserve capacity is vital for small towns and Bloemfontein
Fantastic...I would love to see photo or video of it full, must indeed be a sight to behold..if you have a photo, clip or video on RU-vid please send the link 👍🏽
Agreed..and noted...yes my sound mix edit was heavy handed and inexperienced..I have learnt some good edit and mixing skills since then..please subscribe and keep your eyes open for the videos to be released soon and in particular in early 2024. There should be a marked difference...that said I am enjoying the experience of being out and capturing good memories on video, and try make them meaningful and interesting for whomever is to be my audience 😀
Has this dam ever had water in it. I doubt it has ever had to regulate a flood AND the nature of flooding required to fill that dam would have been monumental and very, very unlikely. I heard it was a project by a Nationalist Party politician that intended to have his farm benefit BUT ALAS IT FAILED
@ianrundle5862 Thanks for your comment and yes it would seem from the comments it indeed has had water in the past .. my driving past the Dam over the last 20 years + has been infrequent and far between.. to me it was always been inigma- that said those who are more local to the area have commented more precisely about its history - well worth a read - Thanks for watching it is much appreciated 👍🏽
@ianrundle5862 • If there is any truth in it that you "heard" your rubbish, it must have been from your own self drunk reflection in a mirrior. That dam conltroles floods an a yearly basis. Same as 100 others in your delapidated country - since the Nationalists were stopped by clowns like you.
Thanks for comment- yes having travelled from Durban to Bloemfontein and then to Knysna in the past 2 years I will say the roads and stops in the most South Africa are much better and cleaner than what we see in the UK.. those folk that do the hard work keep them clear and clean do a fantastic job - impressive . The roads are mostly good , the N8 a couple of years back was a challenge 🙄.. see my video "Dad' last Film"
@@ronaldwagener7597 It's exactly why I made the comment and if your grey stuff was working properly, you would have been curious as well to ask the same question.
Thanks Moses @mosesmanaka8109 for your comment and indeed will be big help to me in narrative for future videos.. the route is the N9 leaving from Graaff-Reinet heading to George. The Dam is about 100km from Graaff-Reinet on that route. The road trip is amazing so if you get the chance please drive it when you can.. the video is meant to be entertainment more than informative but indeed folks want to know. I will be filming again all the way from Johannesburg to Cape Town via Kysna stopping at many interesting stops ..please subscribe and comment on all my videos and I hope you enjoy exploring these wonderful places with me - blessings 👍🏽
@@williamsmit619 The dam was full for months in 2001. Reason for dry dam is not enough rainfall in the catchment area and because of weirs built upstream.
Thanks - I did not know that, and I do appreciate your feedback and comments, they certainly adds more insights to the mystery of why the Dam is mostly empty 😀
