Demographics, practices and water quality from domestic potable rainwater harvesting systems

2012 ◽  
Vol 61 (5) ◽  
pp. 261-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bonnie Stump ◽  
Matthew McBroom ◽  
Ray Darville
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Harvesting Systems

scholarly journals Water quality management for domestic rainwater harvesting systems in Fiji

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 134-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. Kohlitz ◽  
M. D. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Quality Management ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Water Quality Management ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Limited Government ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Harvesting Systems

Health risks from drinking rainwater are relatively small in the developing world context, but action is needed to ensure water safety. Water safety plans (WSPs) use an approach to manage water quality that has shown signs of success with public and communal water supplies, but relatively little research has been done to investigate the application of WSPs to self-supply systems. The aim of this paper is to investigate the primary issues surrounding appropriate water quality management of domestic rainwater harvesting (DRWH) systems in Fiji and consider how the principles of WSPs can be applied in this context. A qualitative research design was followed, utilising semi-structured interviews with 34 rural households and six key informants, sanitary inspections of DRWH systems and thematic data analysis. A number of challenges, including limited government resources and the limited knowledge and casual attitudes of rural rainwater consumers, constrain the practicality of adopting conventional WSPs at the household level, but steps for improvement can be taken.

scholarly journals Design and management of rainwater harvesting systems to control water quality for potable purposes in Cu Khe, Vietnam

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 452-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonghwan Kim ◽  
Anh Dzung Dao ◽  
Mikyeong Kim ◽  
Viet-Anh Nguyen ◽  
Mooyoung Han
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Harvesting Systems ◽  
Control Water

Analysis of Fiber Filter Media after 6 Years of Use as a First Flush Filter

2011 ◽  
Vol 695 ◽  
pp. 93-96
Author(s):  
Ree Ho Kim ◽  
Jung Hun Lee ◽  
Sang Ho Lee ◽  
Hana Kim
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Ion Exchange ◽  
New Media ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Quality Parameters ◽  
First Flush ◽  
Filter Media ◽  
Harvesting Systems ◽  
Fiber Filter

Pollutants in rainwater often cause problems such as non-point source pollutant and deterioration of collected water quality in rainwater harvesting systems. Fiber filter media have been developed to resolve these problems by removing pollutants in rainwater by filtration and ion-exchange mechanisms. They have been also successfully applied for the treatment of first-flush rainwater. However, little information is available on the long-term efficiency and the lifetime of the fiber filter media. In this study, new and used fiber filter media were compared in terms of their filterability and ion-exchange capability. The used filter media samples were taken from a first flush filter in a rainwater harvesting system located in an elementary school in Kyonggi-Do. They were used from 2005 to 2010 without any replacement or cleaning. Water quality parameters of an inflow and outflow in the first flush filter were analyzed to quantify the on-site treatment efficiency of the used media. It was shown that the turbidity was removed by approximately 60% and COD was partly removed. The removal efficiency of particles by the used media was similar to that by the new media. Nevertheless, the removal efficiencies of nitrogen and phosphorous by the used media were substantially reduced when compared with the new media. This suggests that the fiber filter media should be periodically replaced to maintain high removals of nutrients. On the other hand, they can be used for more than 6 years if their primary purpose is to removal particles.

An examination of factors affecting sustainability of domestic rainwater harvesting systems in a rural, semi-arid region of Mexico

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 1388-1397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena E. Neibaur ◽  
Elizabeth P. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Water Treatment ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
World Health ◽  
Plate Count ◽  
Human Consumption ◽  
Technical Feasibility ◽  
Harvesting Systems ◽  
Semi Arid

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is increasingly utilized today by populations to alleviate water supply issues, particularly in rural, dry environments. Limited research has considered, simultaneously, the numerous factors that contribute to sustainability – for example, social acceptance, water quality, and maintenance needs – of RWH. This research aimed to improve the understanding of factors influencing the sustainability of rainwater harvesting systems for domestic use (DRWHS) through examination of social, water quality, and technical feasibility components. We conducted 50 household surveys and 17 rainwater quality analyses in San Jose Xacxamayo, a rural, semi-arid community in Puebla, Mexico. Results showed that DRWHS are socially accepted primarily because of the presence of existing local skills and knowledge, as well as critical need for water. Results from most of the water quality parameters measured were within World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for human consumption, with the exception of pH, total coliform, and heterotrophic plate count, which required water treatment prior to consumption. Technical feasibility was the main barrier to the sustainability of DRWHS; highly seasonal rainfall and small roof sizes (averaging 70 m2) resulted in households unable to meet annual water needs. Increasing roof sizes and providing water treatment could ensure DRWHS sustainability in the studied community.

Impact of rainwater harvesting systems on nutrient and sediment concentrations in roof runoff

2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 220-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathy M. DeBusk ◽  
William F. Hunt
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Pollutant Removal ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Nutrient Concentrations ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Roof Runoff ◽  
Phosphorus Species ◽  
Harvesting Systems ◽  
Physical And Chemical

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems have the unique ability to contribute to stormwater management goals via mitigation of runoff volumes and peak flow rates. Additionally, collecting and storing runoff via RWH systems can potentially provide water quality benefits due to physical and chemical processes that occur within the storage tank. This study quantified the water quality improvement provided by storing rooftop runoff via RWH systems at four sites in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. Roof runoff and extraction spigot samples were analyzed for total suspended solids (TSS), nitrogen species and total phosphorus. Roof concentrations were significantly greater than spigot concentrations for all constituents except TSS, indicating the ability of RWH systems to significantly lower nutrient concentrations of incoming roof runoff. Lack of significant TSS reduction was likely attributable to low, ‘irreducible’ concentrations of TSS in the roof runoff. The use of additional filtration components prior to the extraction spigot could aid in lowering spigot TSS concentrations. The findings presented herein contend that stormwater benefits associated with RWH are not only limited to hydrologic mitigation, but also include reductions in concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus species. Thus, it is recommended that pollutant removal credit be assigned to these systems when used as stormwater control measures.

Importance of maintenance in rainwater harvesting systems: a case study

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ju Young Lee ◽  
Hyoungju Kim ◽  
Mooyoung Han
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Rainwater Harvesting ◽  
Oxygen Demand ◽  
Total Coliform ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Harvesting Systems ◽  
Microbiological Parameters ◽  
Proper Operation

In this study, the quality of collected rainwater at a downtown middle school rainwater harvesting system was evaluated by measuring physical, chemical, and microbiological parameters such as pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), NO3, PO4, total coliform (TC), Escherichia coli , and some metals (i.e. Al, Cr, Mn, Zn, Cu, As, Cd, and Pb) (2003 to 2011). The analysis shows that the collected water quality is poor, which presents health, considering the high levels of bacterial indicators detected in the harvested rainwater, i.e. turbidity (1.4 to 15.5 NTU) and E. coli (120 and 35 CFU/100 mL in 2007 to 210 and 60 CFU/100 mL in 2011). This study shows that deteriorating water quality was caused by system contamination due to the absence of maintenance. Based on this study, proper operation and maintenance are generally the simplest and most effective ways of maintaining water quality.

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