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As a result of the 1984 drought, the farmers at Douglas, with the financial support of
the local farmers' co-operative, initiated an emergency scheme on the bank of the Vaal
River near its confluence with the Orange River, to transfer Orange River water to the
existing Douglas Weir on the Vaal River. In addition to problems of chronic water
shortage, the water quality in the lower Vaal River also deteriorated greatly resulting in
an unacceptably high level of salinity for irrigation water.
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The emergency scheme involved the construction of a pumping station at Marksdrift on
the Orange River, with a pump head of 39 m and an emergency earth canal of
22 km. With the completion of the scheme approximately 8 100 ha of drought
stricken irrigation land is now assured of an adequate supply of high quality water.
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In 1986 the emergency scheme was incorporated into the Orange-Douglas Government Water
Scheme, with the potential of expanding the existing irrigation development in the Douglas
area by a further 4 000 ha. This scheme involved lining the canal to transform
the emergency canal into a permanent structure and increasing the capacity along the first
portion to 12 m3/s, as well as the upgrading of the extensive water
distribution network. The scheme was started in 1987 and completed in 1994.
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