Bospoort Dam

Bospoort Dam is a gravity/earth-fill type dam on the Hex River, a tributary of the Elands River, part of the Crocodile River (Limpopo) basin.[1] It is located near Rustenburg, North West, South Africa. Its primary purpose is for irrigation.

Bospoort Dam
Official nameBospoort Dam
CountrySouth Africa
LocationNorth West
Coordinates25°33′45″S 27°21′14″E
PurposeIrrigation
Opening date1933
Owner(s)Department of Water Affairs
Dam and spillways
Type of damCombination gravity and earth fill dam
ImpoundsHex River
Height23 m
Length468 m
Reservoir
CreatesBospoort Dam Reservoir
Total capacity18.2×10^6 m3 (640×10^6 cu ft)
Surface area378.8 ha (936 acres)

History

It was established in 1933. It was originally the main water supply for the town of Rustenburg. In the sixties it was no longer used for drinking water due to contamination from platinum and chrome mines in the region. Due to water shortages in the nineties it was again used as the main water source for the Boitekong and surrounding townships.[2] The fish in the dam are not fit for human consumption. The water in the dam in so corrosive that the steel sluices had to be replaced by a major rebuilding project in 2009 and 2010 for fear of the dam wall collapsing in a flood. The new dam structure was built from corrosion resistant compounds.[3]

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gollark: It should EITHER be concatentation or zip-and-add or something or JUST ERROR like in a sane language.
gollark: It probably should NOT do the ridiculous stringy thing.
gollark: Do YOU want an HNode™ account‽
gollark: UTF-16 strings, interestingly enough.

See also

References
  1. Crocodile/Marico WMA 3
  2. List of South African Dams from the Department of Water Affairs
  3. Map of the dam and surrounding area


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