Why do we need Rainwater Harvesting?
Have you ever wondered why, in a Country which receives so much rain, water shortages are often headline news? Or why flooding is becoming 'normal' although the rainfall remains the same?
We simply don't have enough reservoirs to supply the ever increasing demand for water. But why then, do we use drinking water for flushing toilets and laundry purposes? Other Countries don't and we don't have to either!. Recycling rain water via rain harvesting for flushing toilets, washing clothes and watering the garden significantly reduces the demand on our reservoirs, lowers your own costs and goes a long way to protecting the environment. Precious drinking water reservoirs can be safe-guarded and flooding reduced by installing a rain water harvester system
Rainwater Harvesting and Floods
Flooding is a result of too much rain entering the drains and rivers too fast. Undeveloped land can store the water in the soil for gradual release into the streams and rivers, but developed land, where the rain falls on concrete, roofs and tarmac, flushes straight into the drains, causing immediate river surges. Every square mile of developed land causes 16 million gallons of rain water to directly enter the rivers on a rainy day!
The tremendous increase in land development over the last 20 years has been directly responsible for the current flood risk situation. Flooding will be reduced by the use of rain water harvesting systems as the rain is saved for recycling rather than being flushed straight into the drains. Lowering of ground-water levels can also be avoided during dry periods by installing rain water harvesters.
Soft rainwater contains no calcium deposits; the cause of hard water, so, in your own home, the installation of a rain water harvesting system ensures that:
Washing machines last longer
Toilets never suffer from limescale build-up
You will save on washing powder and de-calcification products
Cars and windows dry without streaks and smears
You save money and the environment benefits with you!
A clause of the new Water Bill gives Water Companies the power to make the fitting of water meters compulsory.
Water debt in the UK is nearly £1bn. Almost one in five families owe money to their water company and the water industry is the single largest user of the court system in the UK with almost 250,000 claims per year
Massive water price increases have already been agreed for the next five years
To provide and dispose of each tonne or cubic metre of water uses 0.905 Kwh of electricity and produces 0.404 Kg of Carbon Dioxide.
You pay for water twice, as it enters your property and as it leaves it.
Water use has increased by 70% since 1970
Each person flushes the toilet about six times a day, older people flush the toilet more than 6 times a day.
Toilet flushing is the single largest user of household water, 30-40%, up to 90% for offices.
Each person uses about 150 litres of water every day. About 60 litres of this is for toilet flushing
AND WE USE EXPENSIVE DRINKING WATER!
Rain saving, Rain harvesting, storage and rain recycling is due to become an important part of future development under the new Sustainable Drainage Systems legislation and the Code for Sustainable Homes. Saving rain water is vital if we are to create sustainable houses.
