EDITORIAL – Time to consider rainwater harvesting
We all know by now that water conservation is the most cost-effective and environmentally sound way to reduce the demand for water, which will stretch our total water supply farther. Let us consider also that rainwater harvesting is becoming a viable alternative for supplying households and businesses with water.
Catching rainwater and using it to assist in our daily lives is also a means of removing total dependency for water from the Barbados Water Authority (BWA). Imagine if we were able to catch and repurpose the volumes of water causing flooding in some parishes recently. Admittedly, it is not a blanket solution to all our water problems, but rainwater harvesting has been looked at as part of the solutions process and it has its merit. The proposals for desalination plants, the move to have additional water trucks, a water reuse policy and infrastructural upgrades are steps in the right direction, and rainwater harvesting can complement other possible solutions put forward to address the water woes as well. The suggestion to engage in rainwater harvesting must however be adopted by the majority of householders, who are serious about doing their part to conserve and reuse water and preserve water supplies.
The collection of rainwater, when one does have access to it, can take a huge burden off the BWA and it is an excellent back up source in times of drought, low water pressure and when there are problems with the public supply. If rainwater harvesting is put into practice, schools and businesses would not need to close when the BWA cannot supply water to some areas and life can continue without much interruption.
The fact that you own your “rainwater” gives you control over how you use it. It is simple to construct and easy to maintain with little cost and your rain water harvesting system can be designed according to what you can afford or want. Some persons might start with one plastic tank while others might build a more elaborate system.
With rainwater harvesting, thousands of gallons of water can be saved and used to flush toilets, for laundry, in the garden and for watering lawns, for irrigation systems for agricultural purposes, for washing vehicles, bathing pets, refilling outdoor fountains, fish ponds and aquariums, washing driveways and sidewalks and even for industrial processes.
The Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C), in its efforts to support Caribbean countries in the sustainable management of their water resources, has been pushing its Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) model for some time now. There have been some local efforts made at rainwater harvesting as well. However, these have been looked upon as mere experiments, for the most part. It is clear now, however, that we need as a nation to look in broader terms at rainwater harvesting as one of our plausible solutions to address this matter of water scarcity.
While great focus is being placed on finding solutions to address the water woes affecting persons in some rural parts of the island – and this is commendable – it is time Barbadians on a whole take some action to reduce the drain on water resources in general. We can never tell when an isolated issue will become a wider problem, given the impact of climate change on the seasonal distribution of rainfall, and hence the need for more Barbadians to take action.