Page 60 - Green Builder Magazine Sept-Oct 2017

Tips, Technology and Common Sense
Solutions for a Thirsty World

An Underutilized Resource

Sometimes scarce, rainwater

could be–and should be–

managed more efficiently.

BY ELIZABETH HEIDER
HEN IT RAINS, our natural instinct is to take
cover. We find a place to shield ourselves from
getting wet, or if we planned ahead, we pull out
an umbrella and keep moving ahead to get to our
Wdestination. It’s in our nature to avoid the rain,
when really we should be seeking measures to capture it.
We take for granted the free resource that is rainwater, which at
times in the U.S. is scarce, and around the world is rapidly becoming
a scarcity crisis.
If you live in California, Nevada or Oregon, for example, you know
drought all too well. Even water-surrounded Florida has suffered
from drought in the last decade. Here and in developed nations
abroad, as the world population charges toward 9 billion, water
represents a significant problem because of supply shortages, poor
quality, or inadequate distribution and disposal systems.
Rainwater is a valuable resource that we should be trying to not
only harvest, but seek to manage during times of heavy rainfall.
Using strategies such as incorporating cisterns and bioswales into
projects from the onset is environmentally responsible and can lead
to cost savings if used in a holistic approach in building a sustainable
structure.

THE CISTERN: A WATER STEWARD
You have probably seen these barrels connected to downspouts CREDIT: SKANSKA U.S.A.
in residential backyards. They collect rainwater runoff from the
roof, which channels into the barrel and is stored for future use Showing (bio)diversity. The Expo Line Phase 2 project’s
to water lawns and gardens, clean off gardening tools and wash landscaping design uses native drought-tolerant plant species and
cars. Cisterns help lower water bills, particularly in the summer recycled water supplemented for irrigation to conserve potable
months, by collecting a free resource. They are also important for water consumption, reduce stormwater runoff and promote a
our environment, helping to reduce water pollution by decreasing more natural state of biodiversity.
the amount of runoff contaminated by fertilizer and other surface non-potable need within a building, ranging from the water to flush
chemicals that wash into streams and rivers. It’s a small and simple toilets to providing HVAC systems with water for cooling towers.
way to make a big impact for the environment and for cost savings. At the leading edge, district-scale solutions mean the water
Using cisterns is a great way to become a good steward of your collected by a group of buildings can be redistributed throughout a
local community. community, and even treated locally. An elegant example of this is the
Rain cisterns are becoming more prevalent on construction Omega Center for Sustainable Living in Rhinebeck, N.Y. Moreover,
jobsites too, and for various uses. For example, it is good conservation every gallon of rainwater collected and put to use is one less hitting
practice, and saves cost to use water runoff to clean equipment. utility bills.
Systems can be designed to capture rainwater for use in nearly any The construction industry has made great strides in building

58 GREEN BUILDER September/October 2017 www.greenbuildermedia.com

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