Glassblock Dam construction report by the end of April- Coltart

Bongokuhle Moyo, Online writer

BULAWAYO Mayor Senator David Coltart, during a recent councillors’ meeting, said there is progress in the construction of the Glassblock Dam.

He announced that the Government had agreed to enter into an agreement for the construction of the US$100 million dam.

Glass Block Dam is a proposed reservoir on the Umzingwane River with a capacity of 14 million cubic metres. The construction works of the Glass Block Dam, which includes a 41km pipeline connecting to the Lower Ncema Dam, would take 30 months to complete.

Private investors have proposed to construct the dam as an alternative water source, adding to the city’s six supply dams-Inyankuni, Mtshabezi, Insiza, Lower Ncema, Umzingwane, and Upper Ncema.

It is expected to alleviate the city’s perennial water woes.

The mayor informed the council that the Technical Committee would submit a report by the end of April.

The report would outline the necessary projections to secure the South East corridor of water supply. It would also cover the construction of the Glassblock Dam, the construction of a 32 km pipeline from the dam to Ncema, the rehabilitation of Ncema water treatment works, and the upgrading of the Tuli Reservoir.

Mayor Coltart commended the Government on the progress made with the Gwayi/Shangani project and acknowledged its viability as a long-term solution. He expressed the council’s support for the Gwayi/Shangani project but emphasised that it should not halt the construction of the Glassblock dam. The mayor emphasised that the construction of the dam remained the council’s top priority.