CP-1998-03
Rainwater catchment systems development guidelines
Fok, Yu-Si
Most rainwater catchment systems (RWCS) are developed and managed by private users. From the public safety standpoint, RWCS are a concern because the construction of the water supply systems is unregulated since no building code or building permit is required at present. From the public health standpoint RWCS are often a big concern because the water quality is not monitored for potable uses. According to Wilken (1995), the number of people living in urban areas jumped from 737 million in 1950 to 2.6 billion in 1995. The urban share of the total population increased from 29% to 45% in just 45 years. More than 50% of the developed countries’ populations were already urban by 1950; therefore, the increase in urban populations in recent decades largely took place in developing countries. The rapidly increasing population rate has a great impact on the public utilities. A great demand in such a short time causes frequent water shortages. This becomes a problem because traditional water supply development requires sufficient time to plan to acquire water rights and right-of-ways, and to obtain permits and funding. Most immigrants to cities are poor and are trying to earn a living in the city. The water shortage problems are just part of their daily struggles. RWCS development is a suitable solution for them. This paper presents a set of RWCS development guidelines based on the affordability principle in order to provide a common ground for the public and private sectors to solve the water shortage problem.