Rainwater Harvesting at Household Level

Householders can use rainwater by collecting roof run-off in a tank for use as drinking water (common in arid regions), flushing toilets or for irrigation of the garden. Dust particles, leaf litter and animal droppings could contaminate the first flush of roof run-off. The first flush could be simply diverted using a simple diverter. A screen could be placed at the inlet to the tank to filter gross particles. Water for drinking will still require to be boiled to denature pathogens.

Water from the roof could be directed to the garden beds directly rather than by soakways, and within this way shallow rooted vegetation can benefit from the water, especially in arid regions.