Rainwater Harvesting

According to the EPA, rainwater harvesting has significant potential to provide environmental and economic benefits by reducing stormwater runoff and conserving potable water. Resources available in this sub-theme include training materials on rainwater roof catchments and guidance on how to design ground level storage tanks, among other resources that support the practice of rainwater harvesting.

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Rainwater Harvesting Resources

Quick Resource: Active Water Harvesting

Published: 
December 1, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
This Active water Harvesting article explains the differences between passive and active water harvesting.Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Quick Resource: Stormwater Quantity

Published: 
December 1, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
Rainwater harvesting can help ameliorate the effects of development on natural hydrology. In fact, a major goal of low impact development (LID) is to mimic a site's natural hydrology as much as possible. LID practices can even restore a watershed's hydrological functions. Water harvesting...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Water Supply and Stormwater Management Benefits of Residential Rainwater Harvesting in U.S. Cities

Published: 
August 1, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
This article presents an analysis of the projected performance of urban residential rainwater harvesting systems.Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Desert Water Harvesting Initiative: Rainwater and Stormwater Harvesting, Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development for Improved Sustainability and Adaption to Climate Change

Published: 
June 4, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
This article is about the green infrastructure and the low impact development. It also shows how water harvesting can but at a solution on multiple scales.Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

The Cochise Water Project: Pueblo Del Sol Country Club

Published: 
January 1, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
The Pueblo del Sol project installed a rainwater harvesting system that would utilize their tennis courts and a portion of an adjacent roof area as collection surfaces.Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Rainwater Harvesting Conservation, Credit, Codes, and Cost: Literature Review and Case Studies

Published: 
January 1, 2013
The National Institutes for Water Resources
Rainwater harvesting has been used throughout history as a water conservation measure, particularly in regions where other water resources are scarce or difficult to access. In recent years, researchers and policy makers have shown renewed interest in water use strategies due to rising water...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Rainwater Collection - Calculating Water Supply and Demand to Estimate Storage Needs

Published: 
February 1, 2011
The National Institutes for Water Resources
This document provides a method for general calculation of water supply and demand for estimating water storage needs. It briefly details the importance of balancing a water budget and how to create a budget. The document also Provides guidance on how much rain water you can collect, necessary...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Rainwater Harvesting in the Southwestern United States: a Policy Review of the Four Corners States

Published: 
May 6, 2010
The National Institutes for Water Resources
With the passage of the nation's first municipal rainwater harvesting ordinance for commercial projects, Tucson placed itself at the forefront of the national rainwater harvesting movement. The ordinance calls for 50 percent of water used for landscaping on new commercial properties to come...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

City of Tucson Development Standard No. 10-03.0 Commercial Water Harvesting

Published: 
April 27, 2009
The National Institutes for Water Resources
Harvesting rainwater is a useful strategy for providing supplemental irrigation water to commercial landscapes, making more efficient use of the desert's most limited resource--water. The City of Tucson Mayor and Council adopted the Commercial Rainwater Harvesting Ordinance on October 14, 2008...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

Managing Wet Weather With Green Infrastructure Municipal Handbook: Rainwater Harvesting Policies

Published: 
December 1, 2008
The National Institutes for Water Resources
Rainwater harvesting, collecting rainwater from impervious surfaces and storing it for later use, is a technique that has been used for millennia. It has not been widely employed in industrialized societies that rely primarily on centralized water distribution systems, but with limited water...Read more
Regional focus: 
United StatesNorth America

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