Orange-Fish River Tunnel

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Entrance to the tunnel at Gariep Dam

The Orange-Fish River Tunnel is a structure in South Africa . Water from the Orange River is channeled into the Great Fish River through a 83-kilometer tunnel . It is used for the artificial irrigation of fields, the drinking water supply of urban areas and the water supply for industry.

history

Due to the lack of water in the Eastern Cape Province , due to its location in or near the Karoo , plans were made as early as 1928 to divert water from the Orange River south as part of the Orange River Development Project . In the early 1960s, the entire project was approved by the government; the then opposition United Party offered little resistance. However, the project almost failed due to the high rate of inflation . Part of the project was the construction of the dam to build the Hendrik Verwoerd Dam , later Gariep Dam. Construction of the tunnel began in 1966. The building was inaugurated on August 22, 1975 by Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster . The British Alan Muir Wood and Keeve Steyn and Partners in Johannesburg , who worked on behalf of the South African Department of Water Affairs , were responsible for the construction . The costs amounted to 76.4 million pounds Sterling .

description

The inlet is located in the province of Free State (Free State) on the south bank of the Gariep Dam near the small village Oviston, an acronym for the Orange Visrivier Tonnel . Water is drained off on four levels through a cloverleaf-shaped structure; the different levels serve to mix different water qualities. The four openings can be closed independently of one another.

The tube is around 83 kilometers long and is the longest closed aqueduct in the southern hemisphere and the second longest water-bearing tunnel in the world. It has a diameter of 5.35 meters. The flow capacity is 54 cubic meters per second, the gradient is 1: 2000 (around 0.029%). Over 200,000 cubic meters of concrete were used. The tube runs from north to south and, with the Suurberge Mountains, passes under the main watershed between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans .

The outlet is on the Teebus Spruit River in the Eastern Cape Province. From there the water reaches the Great Fish River via the Groot Brak River or via a system of canals, weirs and the Cookhouse Tunnel near Somerset East to the Sundays River . Pipelines lead water from the rivers to the cities of Nelson Mandela Bay and Makhanda .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Meshack M. Khosa: Empowerment through economic transformation. HSRC Press, 2001, ISBN 0796919720 , p. 306. Excerpts from books.google.de
  2. ↑ Meshack M. Khosa: Empowerment through economic transformation. HSRC Press, 2001, ISBN 0796919720 , p. 314. Excerpts from books.google.de
  3. ↑ Information at sahistory.org.za (English), accessed on September 24, 2015
  4. ↑ a b data at dwaf.gov.za ( memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English), accessed September 24, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dwaf.gov.za
  5. ↑ a b Water management map of the project ( memento of the original from September 26, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed September 24, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dwaf.gov.za