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Classification of Soil Water
Published in A. Zaman, Md. Hedayetullah, Sustainable Water Resource Development and Management, 2022
Rainwater is nothing but it is precipitated, harvested water in liquid form. Various methods largely used to collect and store rainwater such as a roof, land surface, or rock catchment. The water is mostly stored in a rain water tank or directed to recharge groundwater by means of runoff obstruction. Rainwater infiltration is another aspect of rainwater harvesting drawing an important role in stormwater management and in the replenishment of the groundwater levels. Rainwater harvesting was practiced over 4000 years ago throughout the world, traditionally in arid and semi-arid areas, it has provided drinking water, domestic water, and water for livestock and irrigation purposes. Nowaday, rainwater harvesting has attained much on significance as a modern, water saving, and simple technology around the world.
Water
Published in John C. Ayers, Sustainability, 2017
Because we need water to survive, it is important to increase water security and resilience by adding redundancy to water supply systems (Kellogg and Pettigrew 2008). During short- and long-term emergencies, the most critical resource is potable water, especially in arid regions. Rainwater harvesting is a cost-effective approach to increasing water supply. Rainwater that falls on a roof is collected at a downspout into a rainwater tank. Because evaporation purifies water, rainwater is usually the purest water in the hydrologic cycle, but water purification may still be required to make harvested rainwater potable (see Manahan [2013] for a description of methods). In areas where it is legal, rainwater harvesting is one of the easiest ways to move toward self-sufficiency.
Introduction to Civil Engineering
Published in P.K. Jayasree, K Balan, V Rani, Practical Civil Engineering, 2021
P.K. Jayasree, K Balan, V Rani
A water tank is a container to store water. The stored water may be later distributed for drinking purpose, irrigation, or for putting out fire. A water tank can be placed either at the ground level or on an elevated stage depending on the head available for flow. It can be made of steel, concrete, or plastics. It can be of rectangular or circular in shape. Tanks are also used for rainwater harvesting. Rainwater runoff from roof tops can be collected in a rainwater tank (also known as a rain barrel) via rain gutters. The stored rainwater may later be used for agriculture, in washing machines, watering gardens, washing cars, flushing toilets, and so on. A typical example of elevated drinking water tank is shown in Figure 1.9.
Urban water trading – hybrid water systems and niche opportunities in the urban water market – a literature review
Published in Environmental Technology Reviews, 2019
Mario Schmack, Martin Anda, Stewart Dallas, Roberta Fornarelli
When designing hybrid water systems that include both rainwater and stormwater components, it is important to pay attention to their interconnectedness. As an example, a well-designed rainwater tank not only helps to reduce potable mains water usage but also contributes to reducing the volume and frequency of stormwater run-off by retaining rainfall run-off and can thus ultimately aid in managing flow regimes for stream protection [29]. In this context, retention time and discharge rate have strong implications for rainwater tank sizing. The interception of rainwater has a further benefit, as suitably designed rainwater tanks also lessen stress on wastewater treatment plants by providing urban flood resilience to cumulative sewer failure, for example in the Nakivubo system in Kampala, Uganda, where large wetland areas that traditionally managed floodwaters have been destroyed by urban encroachment [30].
A study of rainwater tank adoption in Australian households: selecting the right size for better water-saving performance
Published in Architectural Engineering and Design Management, 2023
Xuechen Gui, Yan Xiong, Zhonghua Gou
To meet these requirements, local government and organizations in different states of Australia have proposed several policies to promote water saving. For example, in NSW, Hunter Water services provided almost 600,000 people with drinking water, wastewater, recycled water, and stormwater services; in VIC, South East Water delivers water and provided sewerage and recycled water services to 1.7 million people (Water Service Association of Australia, 2019). This shows that the Australia was currently actively working to improve water use efficiency by adopting recyclable water-saving technologies. Among these recyclable water-saving technologies, rainwater tanks have been proven to be the most common and efficient method (Gui & Gou, 2021; Richards et al., 2021). A rainwater tank is a water tank used to collect and store rainwater runoff, typically from rooftops via pipes, which can then be used for household purposes. In Australia, the government has also proposed several design rules for rainwater tanks (Gold Coast City Council, 2008). For example, they have defined three types of rainwater tanks for dwellers to select: small (less than 2 kL), medium (2–10 kL), and large (greater than 10 kL) (Australian Government, 2010). Further, many cities and organizations have proposed detailed rainwater tank rebate programmes. For example, the Water Corporation rainwater tank rebate provided eligible Western Australian customers – including those in residential and non-residential properties, schools, non-profit establishments, and government-owned properties – with rebates of up to $1000 to install or replace rainwater tanks (Australian Government, 2022). Owing to these government promotions and individual trends, many dwellers have begun to adopt rainwater tanks (Gui & Gou, 2021). There were also many architects and designers proposing special house schemes with rainwater tanks. For example, Glenn Murcutt, who won the Pritzker Prize in 2002, had proposed many rainwater tank design strategies for dwellings in Australia (The Real Estate Conversation, 2017). However, many of architects do not have the technical knowledge to improve the effectiveness of their rainwater tanks in buildings (Delaney & Fam, 2015; Gui & Gou, 2021). Besides, among all building sectors, residential sector has been paid more attention because it accounts for a large part of building sector; also, designer and dwellers can design and adopt different types of rainwater tanks according to their needs, especially in single houses. Therefore, to help the homeowners and designers to better select rainwater tanks, it is imperative to understand and maximize their effectiveness in residential sectors.