Rainwater harvesting can provide water for human consumption, reduce water bills and lessen the need to build reservoirs which may require the use of valuable land. The practice of collecting rainwater has been used for over 4,000 years throughout the world. It has provided drinking water, domestic water, water for livestock, water for small irrigation and a way to replenish ground water levels.

Rainwater harvesting in urban areas and cities can have diverse benefits. Providing supplemental water for the city’s requirements, increasing soil moisture levels for urban greenery, increasing the ground water table through artificial recharge, mitigating urban flooding and improving the quality of groundwater are a few of the many benefits. In homes and buildings, collected rainwater can be used for irrigation, flushing toilets and washing laundry. With proper filtration and treatment, harvested rainwater can also be used for showering, bathing, or drinking.

Rainwater harvesting is also effective in reducing stormwater runoff pollution into the watershed. When rain falls, it is clean, but it immediately picks up pollutants from rooftops and pavement. This pollution is carried into storm drains and then into streams. Collecting stormwater from rooftops and directing it to storage tanks so it can be used in and around a building decreases the volume and rate of stormwater runoff thus protecting local bodies of water from pollution.

Sustainability – Rainwater harvesting is one of the most promising alternatives for supplying water in the face of increasing water scarcity and escalating demand. The pressures on water supplies, greater environmental impact associated with new projects as well as deteriorating water quality in reservoirs already constructed, constrain the ability of communities to meet the demand for freshwater from traditional sources. Rainwater harvesting presents an opportunity for augmentation of water supplies allowing for self-reliance and sustainability. Sustaining the environment contributes to the overall conservation of our precious natural resources.

LEED™ / Green Building Design – Rainwater Harvesting can contribute up to 8 points toward LEED Certification.

Whether your building a home, designing a building, looking for alternatives to purchasing municipal water for agriculture or industry, designing for stormwater control, designing landscape, or any other project that can benefit from high quality, low cost water we can help.

Contact us and let our professional, experienced, staff help you decide how beneficial rainwater harvesting can be for your next project.

Local storm water control agencies are ramping up enforcement of, EPA mandated,

Summary of Stormwater Phase II (MS4 – Phase II)

According to EPA: (View full overview here)

Why is The Phase II Stormwater Program Necessary?

Since the passage of the clean water act (CWA), the quality of our Nation’s water has improved dramatically. Despite this progress, however, degraded waterbodies still exist. According to the 2000 National Water Quality Inventory (Inventory), a biennial summary of State surveys of water quality, approximately 40 percent of surveyed U.S. waterbodies are still impaired by pollution and do not meet water quality standards.

The Stormwater Phase II Final Rule is the next step in EPA’s effort to preserve, protect, and improve the Nation’s water resources from polluted stormwater runoff. The Phase II program expands the Phase I program by requiring additional operators of MS4s in urbanized areas and operators of small construction sites, through the use of NPDES permits, to implement programs and practices to control polluted stormwater runoff.

Phase II is intended to further reduce adverse impacts to water quality and aquatic habitat by instituting the use of controls on the unregulated sources of stormwater discharges that have the greatest likelihood of causing continued environmental degradation.

The environmental problems associated with discharges from MS4s in urbanized areas and discharges resulting from construction activity are outlined here.

What Does the Phase II Final Rule Require?

Find out the rules that will apply to your situation here.

This home owner needed another option for her high sulfer well water, so we gave her one. This harvesting system is supplying all the water to the home. The potable water, general household use water, etc.

Rainwater is collected as it runs off the roof of a building, sent through an extensive filtration process, and stored in a holding tank.

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LIKE OIL IN THE 20TH CENTURY, WATER COULD WELL BE THE ESSENTIAL COMMODITY ON WHICH THE 21ST CENTURY WILL TURN.

Human beings have depended on access to water since the earliest days of civilization, but with 7 billion people on the planet as of October 31, exponentially expanding urbanization and development are driving demand like never before.

Water has been growing at more than twice the rate of population increase in the last century, said Kristy Jenkinson of the World Resources Institute, a Washington think tank.

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As more open ground is converted to developed ground, the impervious surface area is increased. This leads to more water running over the surface and never recharging the groundwater. A 1500 sq ft house sitting on a 1 acre lot doubles the amount of runoff from the lot. Based on historical rainfall data, that same 1500 sq ft. house in the Knoxville area, is capable of producing 3000 gal of water per month. Harvesting this water not only reduces the runoff from the lot, but it also can be used to reduce the amount of water purchased from the utility district. The cost of water in the Knoxville area ranges from $10-$20 per thousand gallons and is guaranteed to go up in the future.

If you are building a LEED house, then let us talk to you! A rainwater harvesting system installed correctly will earn points both in Sustainable Sites and Water Efficiency. These points not only grant a higher rating, but they also will save money in the long term, and create a more efficient home. Each home/project is different, but the rainwater harvesting options are so diverse and flexible that we are confident we can fit within your budget while supplying the desired features.

Above ground tanks are the most efficient and cost-effective way of collecting rainwater, but they are unsightly and take up valuable lawn and landscaping space. Perfect Water is equipped to design and install underground systems. Some of our options are even load-bearing and can be installed underneath your driveway or basement! On these systems, even the filters are underground to provide the least amount of obstruction. However, if above ground tanks are desired, they can be painted any color and there are many ways to blend them in with the landscaping.

Rainwater harvesting is an easy and effective way to reduce cost and benefit the environment. Payback periods for a system range from 10-15 years. As an added benefit, the water collected off of roofs is already softened. After running it through a few filters and a UV light, the clean, soft, rainwater is usable for drinking! Or the water can be used immediately for non-potable uses. And the water that would normally increase runoff, disturbing soil and creating problems downstream, is instead harvested and used. In short, rainwater harvesting makes sense!