Vaal Dam - wikipedia Vaal Dam Vaal Dam Location of Vaal Dam in South Africa Official name Vaal Dam Country South Africa Location Border Gauteng and Free State Coordinates 26 ° 53 ′ 41 '' S 28 ° 08 ′ 44 '' E ﻿ / ﻿ 26.89472 ° S 28.14555 ° E ﻿ / - 26.89472 ; 28.14555 Coordinates : 26 ° 53 ′ 41 '' S 28 ° 08 ′ 44 '' E ﻿ / ﻿ 26.89472 ° S 28.14555 ° E ﻿ / - 26.89472 ; 28.14555 Purpose Domestic and industrial water Opening date 1938 Owner ( s ) Dept of Water Affairs Dam and spillways Type of dam Gravity dam Impounds Vaal River Height 54.2 m Reservoir Creates Vaal Dam Total capacity 2,609,799,000 cubic metres ( 9.21642 × 10 cu ft ) Surface area 320 square kilometres ( 120 sq mi ) The Vaal Dam in South Africa was constructed in 1938 and lies 77 km south of OR Tambo International Airport. The lake behind the dam wall has a surface area of about 320 square kilometres ( 120 sq mi ) and is 47 meters deep. The Vaal Dam lies on the Vaal River, which is one of South Africa 's strongest - flowing rivers. Other rivers flowing into the dam are the Wilge River, Klip River, Molspruit and Grootspruit. It has over 800 kilometres ( 500 mi ) of shoreline and is South Africa 's second biggest dam by area and the fourth largest by volume. Contents 1 History 2 Water sports 3 Nature 4 See also 5 References 6 External links History The construction of Vaal Dam started during the depression of the early thirties and the dam was completed in 1938 with a wall height of 54.2 metres ( 178 ft ) above lowest foundation and a full supply capacity of 994,000,000 cubic metres ( 3.51 × 10 cu ft ). The dam is a concrete gravity structure with an earthfill section on the right flank. It was built as a joint venture by Rand Water and the Department of Irrigation ( now known as the Department of Water Affairs ). The dam was subsequently raised in the early fifties to a height of 60.3 metres ( 198 ft ) which increased the capacity to 2,188,000,000 cubic metres ( 7.73 × 10 cu ft ). A second raising took place in 1985 when the wall was raised by a further 3.05 metres ( 10.0 ft ) to 63.4 metres ( 208 ft ) above lowest foundation. The capacity of the dam is currently 2,609,799,000 cubic metres ( 9.21642 × 10 cu ft ) and a further 663,000,000 cubic metres ( 2.34 × 10 cu ft ) or 26 % can be stored temporarily for flood attenuation. The flood attenuation properties of the dam were severely tested in February 1996 when the largest flood ever recorded at the Vaal Dam site was experienced. An inflow of over 4,700 cubic metres per second ( 170,000 cu ft / s ) was measured into the Vaal Dam which was already at full capacity due to good rains and it was only through the expert management of the Hydrology staff at DWAF that the maximum flood released from the dam was limited to 2,300 cubic metres per second ( 81,000 cu ft / s ). Flows above 2,300 cubic metres per second ( 81,000 cu ft / s ) would have caused serious damage downstream of Vaal Dam and the situation during the 1996 flood became extremely tense as the storage in the reservoir peaked at 118.5 % of Full Supply Capacity on 19 February 1996 i.e. only 194,000,000 cubic metres ( 6.9 × 10 cu ft ) of flood absorption capacity remained before the full inflow would have been released causing massive damage. The Lesotho Highlands Water Project feeds water into the system by gravity contributing to a stable supply of water to the people and industrial complex of Gauteng. This water is piped from Lesotho into the Liebenbergsvlei and Wilge Rivers. The Sterkfontein Dam forms part of the Tugela - Vaal water transfer scheme for the interbasin transfer of water from the Thukela River in KwaZulu - Natal to boost the levels in the Vaal River System. Water from the Sterkfontein Dam is released once the Vaal Dam drops to below 16 %. The dam has its own island some 5 km ( 3 mi ) long. The island was used as a secret meeting place by the apartheid government but now hosts the annual Round the Island Yacht race, a Guinness Book of World Records title of the largest inland yacht race. On 4 May 1948 BOAC introduced Short Solent flying boats on the UK ( Southampton ) to South Africa ( Vaaldam ) service. The small village of Deneysville was used as a stop - over point by the old BOAC flying boats. Water sports The Vaal Dam is a world renowned fishing venue for freshwater carp and catfish. Its shores are filled with anglers throughout the year. Many world class water sport events are held here including the annual `` Round The Island '' yacht race organized by Lake Deneys Yacht Club -- a race that has been in the Guinness Book of Records for being the `` Most Yachts in an Inland Yacht Race in the World '', in which 389 craft crossed the finish line. This race has entered the Guinness Book of Records for the most boats in an inland yacht race. Several large events take place here including Keelboat Week and the Bayshore 200 km jetski race, and now the Bayshore Marina Vaal Dam Treasure Hunt. Lake Deneys Yacht Club and Pennant Nine Yacht Club partnered the organisation of a fleet which participated in the inaugural 2014 and second 2015 international `` Bart 's Bash ''. Three provinces make up the Dam 's shoreline - the Free State has the longest stretch, Mpumalanga has a beautiful and relatively unspoilt shoreline, while the most despoiled by far is that of Gauteng. The dam was commissioned in 1939, has a capacity of 2.536 cubic kilometres ( 2,056,000 acre ⋅ ft ), and a surface area of 320 square kilometres ( 120 sq mi ), the dam wall is 63 metres ( 207 ft ) high. Due to the large lake size reservoir there is a problem with evaporation, see Sterkfontein Dam for more details. Deneysville is the largest town on the Vaal Dam and provides a shopping centre for the Dam. There are three yacht clubs and two marinas. Nature The main angling fish species of the Vaal dam are barbel, common carp, mirror carp, grass carp, smallmouth yellowfish, largemouth yellowfish and mudfish. Egyptian geese and blacksmith lapwing are abundant shore birds, and Caspian terns also occur in large numbers. The greater flamingo is a regular wading bird, with lesser flamingo present in lower numbers, and vagrant openbills have been seen. A few dozen fish eagles are present, while osprey occurs sparsely. See also Vaal River Lesotho Highlands Water Project Sterkfontein Dam References ^ Jump up to : `` VAAL DAM ''. Department of Water Affairs. Retrieved 19 December 2009. Jump up ^ http://www.dwaf.gov.za/iwqs/gis_apps/dam/dams/vaal.htm Jump up ^ http://www.gauteng.net/attractions/entry/vaal_dam/ Jump up ^ `` Museum History 1940 - 1950 ''. British Airways Museum. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 10. Jump up ^ `` There 's much more to LDYC than Sailing ''. Lake Deneys Yacht Club. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 10. Jump up ^ `` Vaal Dam / Vaaldam ( FS ) ''. Fishing and Venues in South Africa. favisa. Retrieved 26 February 2016. Jump up ^ `` Registered CWAC Sites : Free State ''. Coordinated Waterbird Counts. ADU. Retrieved 26 February 2016. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vaal Dam. External images Vaal Dam from the South African Department of Water Affairs Vaal Dam from the Department of Water Affairs Rand Water Board Deneysville National Key Points in South Africa Water supply sites Zwartkopjies Zuikerbosch Vereeniging Mapleton Barrage Palmiet Eikenhof Vaal Dam Mokolo Dam Pump Station Electricity generation and transmission sites Grassridge Transmission Station Perseus Transmission Station Lethabo Power Station Hydra Transmission Station Apollo Transmission Station Minerva Transmission Station Grootvlei Power Station Impala Transmission Station Klaarwater Distribution Station Pegasus Transmission Station Drakensberg Power Station Durban South Distribution Station Durban North Distribution Station Athene Transmission Station Lotus Park Distribution station Camden Power Station Hendrina Power Station Kriel Power Station Arnot Power Station Sol Transmission Station Matla Power Station Duvha Power Station Tutuka Power Station Kendal Power Station Komati Power Station Majuba Power Station Matimba Power Station Muldersvlei Transmission Station Acasia Transmission Station Droeriver Transmission Station Koeberg Nuclear Power Station Gourikwa Power Station Ankerlig Power Station Centlec Crude oil, fuel depot and processing sites OilTanking Grindrod Calulo Natref Refinery Bethlehem Pump Station Coalbrook Pump Station Sasol Pump Station Kroonstad Pump Station Magdala TPL Depot Wilge TPL Depot Shell Depot Alrode Chevron Alrode Sasol Depot Alrode Total Depot Alrode Alrode Chevron Texaco Airport e-Natis Facility Tarlton Distribution Depot Klerksdorp Depot Langlaagte Depot Meyerton Depot Rustenburg Depot Sasol Secunda Jericho Pump Station Rieftontein Pump Station Grootfontein Pump Station Vygeboom Pump Station Bosloop Water Pump Station Nooitgedact Pump Station Transnet Pipeline Witbank Depot Khutala Pump Station Zaaihoek Pump Station Chevron Refinery PetroSA Voorbaai PetroSA GTL Refinery FA Production Platform ORCA Presidential residential sites Nelson Mandela Qunu Village residence Mahlamba Ndlopfu Presidential Residence Sefako Makgatho Presidential Residence President of South Africa Residence Nkandla JL Dube House Presidential Residence ( Genadendal ) Government sites Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature Free State Legislature Northern Cape Provincial Legislature Pretoria Union Buildings North West Provincial Legislature KwaZulu - Natal Legislature Government Building Nelspruit Limpopo Legislature Houses of Parliament, Cape Town 120 Plein Street, Cape Town Western Cape Provincial Parliament SARB Port Elizabeth SARB East London SARB Bloemfontein SARB Port Elizabeth SARB Pretoria SARB Johannesburg South African Bank Note Company Space, science and technology sites Square Kilometre Array Onderstepoort Biological Products SSA Communication Centre CSIR Wind Tunnel Denel Land Systems Denel Dynamics Main Telephone Exchange ( PPR ) ArcelorMittal African Explosives Denel Aviation BAE Systems Land Systems South Africa Hartebeeshoek Earth Station NECSA South African National Space Agency Rheinmetall Denel Munition South Africa Airports O.R. Tambo International Airport King Shaka International Airport Cape Town International Airport Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vaal_Dam&oldid=810646568 '' Categories : Dams completed in 1938 Dams in South Africa Hidden categories : Use dmy dates from December 2011 Coordinates on Wikidata All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from July 2009 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Afrikaans Cebuano Deutsch Norsk Polski Edit links This page was last edited on 16 November 2017, at 15 : 36. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: where does the vaal dam get its water from
Answer: Vaal River