About 71% of the area of our planet is covered with water, but still the UN estimates that about 18% of the world’s population lacks access to clean drinking water and fresh water. Of the total amount of water on the earth, about 97% is in the oceans, which is hence not fit for drinking or even gardening. The other 3% is what all animals, birds and humans depend on. This scarcity has made life miserable, especially in the developing and underdeveloped parts of the world. To tackle the situation, environmentalists all over the world encourage people to use less water and conserve more. Rainwater is something that is in plentiful in most parts of the world and is a renewable source of freshwater, which can be made potable using basic purification systems. Here is a list of eight of the coolest rainwater harvesting systems that can, to some extent, solve the water crisis.
1) Rainpod – A rainwater harvesting barrel:
The Rainpod, by designer David L’Hote of France, allows you to collect rainwater with its unique design and features. Working like a rain barrel, the conceptual Rainpod collects water in a large tank and, standing taller than a man, has the height and reach to cover a large area around it, sprinkling the area using nothing but gravity.
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2) Rain Chain – Conventional Japanese design brought to modern reality:
This ancient Japanese links uses rain chains in lieu of traditional down spouts and have them divert rainwater into your rain barrel, or underground water tank. The rain chain allows you to give back to nature what you took from it.
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3) RainDrops: Cheap rainwater harvesting system for developing countries:
Developed by Evan Gant, the RainDrops system allows people to attach standard plastic bottles to an existing gutter system that has been installed to take the water from the roof to the drain. This way the water flowing through the gutter is stored in the bottles. Once the system is set up using a good number of bottles, it can give you water for gardening and even washing your hands. The system also makes sure that those old cola bottles are prevented from going in the landfills.
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4) Watree – Upside-down umbrella to capture rainwater:
Watree is a rainwater harvesting system that looks just like an umbrella turned upside down. The system is designed to be placed in playgrounds and parks just as a rain shelter. While protecting people from rain, the system collects all the precious drops that fall on it and transfer it to tanks located in a different location. During summers when playground authorities are battling for water, the storage tanks can pump water back through a series of underground pipes.
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5) Slow Water – An inverted parasol rainwater harvesting system:
Slow water is designed by Freddie Yauner. The design includes a chair that plays a dual role of storing the rain water as well as supporting your bottom. The inverted parasol allows rain falling upon it to be collected. This water can then be distributed through a hose pipe to storage points around the garden.
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6) Filterbrella – A water capturing and purifying umbrella:
The Filterbrella has a very innovative activated carbon filter in its hollow rod. The hollow rod actually lets in rainwater, which gets purified by the activated carbon. This water flows into a bottle that is attached to the Filterbrella’s handle, thus making available pure, potable rain water on the go.
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7) CISTA – A trendy rainwater harvesting system for the urban world
CISTA can collect up to 100 gallons of rainwater at a time without taking much space. Built from stainless steel, the system is sturdy enough to do the job for decades. A climbing plant is planted at the base and naturally winds its way up to the top of the 8-foot-tall tower, giving it a green and environmentally-responsible look.
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8) Lotus Flower – System to collect rainwater and keep it potable:
Inspired by the petals of a lotus flower, the system has been developed with the collaboration of Green Cross Italia. Just like a lotus flower, the system opens its copper petals during monsoons and keeps them closed during the other part of the year to preserve the purity of water. Tomas claims that the system can be built using local materials like concrete, copper and wood.
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Comments
While some of these systems are very progressive and forward-thinking, some of these rainwater harvesting methods are not practical. I work everyday to bring innovation to the business of rainwater collection through my company, Innovative Water Solutions, but we also have to make sure these systems are efficient and cost-effective, especially since water is relatively cheap (in comparison with energy costs).
The Slow Water design shows an inverted parasol to collect rainwater into a dual purpose lawn chair. Well, if the actual parasol is only about 40 square feet, you would only collect 24 gallons of water per inch of rainfall. The system is shown in front of a house. If traditional collection methods were used to collect rainwater from the roof, the actual collection could be 10 to 100 times more per inch of rainfall.
Again, while I love and appreciate innovation, we have to be sensible and make sure payback periods are acceptable so that people will want to implement these green building techniques.