Cape Town’s massive Zeekoevlei restoration project has reached an important milestone, with dredging operations officially moving from Storm Bay to Home Bay after nearly a year of work.
The City of Cape Town confirmed that more than 207 000m³ of sediment has already been removed from Storm Bay since dredging began in June 2025. The operation marked the first time Zeekoevlei had been dredged in 42 years.
Now, the next phase of the project is underway at Home Bay, where another 157 000m³ of sediment is expected to be removed over the next 10 months.
Why Zeekoevlei’s dredging is important
Over decades, sediment and nutrient build-up in Zeekoevlei have contributed to worsening water quality and environmental problems in the vlei.
According to the City, the dredging project is aimed at restoring and protecting the ecosystem by removing this accumulated material.
“The dredging of Zeekoevlei is a key investment and delivers on our commitment to restore, improve and protect our vleis,” said the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews.
“With the dredging, we are removing the sediment that has accumulated over time, and reducing nutrient build-up that contributes to poor water quality.” Andrews added.
Moving the dredger was a major operation
Relocating the floating dredger from Storm Bay to Home Bay was no simple task.
Because Home Bay is further away from the dewatering site, contractors first had to install an additional 2 000m of pipeline and a booster pump to keep the system running efficiently.
The dredger itself was disconnected from the existing pipeline and carefully towed across the vlei using a support vessel. At the same time, 16 concrete mooring blocks weighing 2.5 tons each had to be moved to the new site.
According to the City, this relocation and setup process took about three weeks.
The dredging system works by removing sediment from the vlei, which is then pumped through a 6.3km slurry pipeline to large dewatering ponds where the material is dried and stored.
The pipeline crosses several roads in the area, including Governors Walk and Peninsula Road. Water separated from the sediment is then pumped through another 2.3km pipeline to the Cape Flats wastewater treatment works.
The City said progress is monitored through hydrographic surveys conducted every two weeks.
If all goes according to plan, the entire project should be completed in early 2027.
