Feasibility study of rainwater harvesting system in Sylhet City

Abstract

In rural areas in Bangladesh, groundwater is the principal source of water supply. This underground water is available in considerable amount in shallow aquifers. It is free from pathogenic microorganisms and hence water-borne diseases. In plain lands, other than hilly areas, water supply to 97% rural population comes from tube-wells, which is regarded to be a phenomenal achievement in preserving public health. Besides, a dependable water supply system all throughout the country is offset by two factors: (a) high salinity in surface plus groundwater in coastal areas; (b) want of suitable groundwater aquifers in hilly areas and the high cost of setting up tube-wells due to deep underground water table and stony layers. However, presence of arsenic in underground water now poses a serious threat to the success once made in water supply by setting up of manually operated tube-wells in the village areas-the achievement is now on the brink of total collapse. In about 61 districts out of 64, presence of arsenic exceeds a quantity of 0.05 mg/1, a permissible limit as per Bangladeshi water quality standard. Harvesting rainwater can be a pragmatic solution to this problem, which is common in many places in Sylhet especially in the hilly areas on the north eastern part of the city. This can be an alternative source of drinking water because of availability of rainwater from March to October. Heavy rain occurs from end of May till mid September, which is commonly known as the rainy season. This paper focuses on the possibility of harvesting rainwater in rural communities and thickly populated urban areas of Sylhet. It also demonstrates the scopes of harvesting rainwater using simple and low-cost technology. With setting up of a carefully planned rainwater storage tank, a family can have all of its drinking water from rain. Planned use of rainwater through rainwater harvesting in the roof catchments may fulfill the entire annual domestic water demand of a family in the rural areas of Bangladesh.

Feasibility and Adoption of Rainwater Harvesting by Farmers

“…Furthermore, local masons should be trained to build the RWH system in order to further reduce construction costs (Alam et al, 2012). Thus, to minimize construction costs, family labor, local materials and equipment, and local skill should be used as much as possible during the construction of RWH systems (Handia et al, 2003;Alam, et al, 2012).…”

“…Thus, to minimize construction costs, family labor, local materials and equipment, and local skill should be used as much as possible during the construction of RWH systems (Handia et al, 2003;Alam, et al, 2012). Rozaki et al (2017) explained in their research that SFR cost include that of excavation and sealing material.…”

Analytical Study of Environmental Impacts and Their Effects on Groundwater Hydrology

“…For thousands of years, man has survived living in arid regions of the world solely by skillfully managing that vital but scarce resource called water [1]. Out of the two, the surface water and the groundwater, the groundwater has always been more important for survival due to its intrinsic quality of natural preservation.…”

Potentiality of rainwater harvesting for an urban community in Bangladesh

“…Very few attempts were made to explore commercial RWH possibilities in Bangladesh, except the published example for Sylhet city by Alam et al (2012). However, due to the tropical monsoon associated with wide range of rainfall cycle, an evaluation is needed in regards to large scale RWH in Bangladesh.…”