Rain Water Harvesting

The simplest solution for the ever growing water scarcity.

Humans have always wanted water for almost all of their activities. They have found ways to get water to their house, right from pumping up water from a bore well to building dams and channeling water. Ages ago people used cattle to draw water from wells and rivers, it is said that the Egyptians built many canals and drew water from the Nile. Then people started the use of hand pumps, and now the motor pumps to pump up ground water. No one used the water that gets delivered to their house: THE RAIN. Except for the few farmers who planned their sowing period.

What is Ground water?

There are huge reservoirs just under (50-400 feet) the earth’s surface that has large amount of fresh water flowing. These reservoirs get their water from the rain. Rain water seeps through a layer of topsoil, then through a layer of rocks, which acts like a filter and purifies the water. This water dissolves some of the minerals as well. Humans access this water by means of wells and bore-wells.

Facts:

One: Only 5 % of the water on earth is fresh water and consumable by humans.
Two: 60% of this fresh water is in the form of glaciers in the mountain caps, Artic and Antarctic.
Three: A very high percentage of the remaining fresh water is contaminated and polluted.

Rain:

It is a natural distillation process. Sunlight evaporates only the water and leaves the impurities. Low temperature at the higher altitude cools the water vapor and precipitates the water down.

What is Rain water harvesting?

It’s very simple: Collecting rain water.

How to collect?

Create channels on your house, office and other buildings to collect all the water that falls on the building. You can even use the existing drain lines that these buildings have to drain away the rain water. Now we can collect his water in an underground chamber, or can be used for recharging ground water.

Lakes, ponds and some perennial rivers are examples of nature's own way of collecting rain water. Ground water is the nothing but the rain water that nature has been harvesting for millions of years now.

The growing need for water has made humans exploit all their resources, especially the ground water. Here in India most of them rely on ground water. About half of the houses in the city have bore wells and most of the rural population depends on wells. Nearly half of these vents have dried out due to over use. Humans are using water from these sources much faster than the nature can replenish them. So the simplest solution is to harvest free fresh water.

Rain Water Harvesting and Global Warming

Now everyone knows about global warming and its effects. The increase in green house gasses increases global warming. Some of the green house gasses are carbon-di-oxide CO2, Methane CH4, Nitrous Oxide N2O and water vapor. There are so many methods we would have heard about in reducing CO2, CH4 and N2O, but no method of reducing the water vapor in the atmosphere. The solution to this is Rain water harvesting. Rain water gets stored in the chambers or goes underground instead of stagnating on the surface, which is later evaporated leading to increase in water vapor in the atmosphere. This is the most effective solution I could think off. When I learnt that water vapor is a green house gas. I used to wonder what we could do to reduce the evaporation of water from oceans, lakes, rives, ponds, etc. There is actually nothing we can do about it, but we can reduce the amount of surface water.

Advantages of Rain water Harvesting

Over a period of time, floods and drought can be controlled.
Proper utilization can result in huge water collection.
Places which are far from the water sources can be benefited.
Replenish the rapidly reducing ground water.
Reduces green house effect.
It’s inexpensive.
Very easy to implement RWH.
Least or no maintenance required.
Ratio of return to investment is very high. Invest once and enjoy for ever.

Global Warming: Only we can save ourselves from this!!!!!

Let me keep this simple…..
Global warming is due to green house effect. It is caused due to increase in the Green house gasses. These green house gasses trap the sun’s radiation and warms up the planet.
Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and water vapor are the major green house gases, and the increase of such gases increases global warming…

Remember that Energy can neither be created nor be destroyed it can only be changed from one form to another. Heat is also an energy that directly or indirectly causes rain, drought, forest fire, bush fire, hurricanes, tornadoes, cyclones, melting of the ice at the polar, sea level increase, and lots more. Remember if there is a drought in a place, somewhere in the planet there has been a flood. If the summers get hotter, then the winters get colder. This phenomena is in such a way that it has unlimited number of negative effects on the planet we live and these negative effects fosters its own growth. There by fastens the process much faster than we imagined.
Few years back people were talking about saving our planet for our kids, now, its time to save our planet for ourselves.

Everyone is alarmed by the rate of increase in the green house gasses, and that’s all we do. Its time that we take a step to curb this process that we’ve started.

Save fuel – leads to burning lesser amount of Fossil fuels which in turn reduces the pollution.

Use public transport.
Use Hybrid cars.
Turn off your engines, when not in use.
Always have the tire pressure checked.
Change the engine oil on time.
Maintain your vehicle.
For short distance- take a walk or use a bicycle.
Car pool.

Save paper – leads to cutting down of lesser number of tree and also lesser manufacture of paper reducing pollution.

Reduce the use of tissue papers, take your own handkerchief.
Don’t print unnecessary mails.
At the ATM’s – Don’t ask for the transaction slips when not needed.
Recycle your old newspaper.
Use both side of the paper.
Opt for online/electronic billing.
Opt for recycled papers and note books.
Reduce using paper for decorating.
Use reusable paper bags.

Save electricity

Use solar power for heating and lighting your house and office.
If you are stepping away from your computer for a short spans and many applications are running on your comp then just turn off the monitor.
Turn your computer off at your office before going home. (Just turning off the monitor does not work here.)
While buying home and office appliances, Instead of going for the brand you should go for the ones with lesser power ratings.
Use CFLs/CLFs wherever possible instead of conventional Bulbs.
Switch off the electrical appliances at the plug point than just turning it off.
Try to reduce the usage of Air conditioners/coolers and heaters.

Reduce the use of elevators
Set your fridge cooling to most appropriate rather than setting it to full.

Save water

Use a bucket to wash your vehicles rather than using a pipe.
Maintain your taps and pipes
Reuse water (e.g. water used for cleaning can be used for watering plants.)

Other ways

Educate people, spread awareness.
Start harvesting Rain water.
Use reflective glasses in your house and office for windows. (Keeps the place cooler, saves electricity)
Plant trees.
Stop Smoking.

Make Love, not Babies
Have your own garden.
Be responsible.
Follow the rules.
Be healthy and slim. (Obese people consume more oxygen and give out more carbon-di-oxide CO2)
Reduce Burning wood for heating (use alternatives like: solar, Natural gas. Etc.)

* Remember to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

These are just simples things that you do only once or twice in your life time or things that you do in your daily life. Try to follow at least few from the list (which ever is convenient to you. Do your bit). Try to make it a habit.

You don't have to be a super man to save the Earth, but just responsible Humans.

*Notice that everything that you do to save the planet SAVES "YOUR MONEY".