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Rainwater Harvesting (Practical Action Technical Brief)
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== Rainwater quality and health == There are two main issues when looking at the quality and health aspects of DRWH: Firstly, there is the issue of bacteriological water quality. Rainwater can become contaminated by faeces entering the tank from the catchment area. It is advised that the catchment surface always be kept clean. Rainwater tanks should be designed to protect the water from contamination by leaves, dust, insects, vermin, and other industrial or agricultural pollutants. Tanks should be sited away from trees, with good-fitting lids and kept in good condition. Incoming water should be filtered or screened, or allowed to settle to take out foreign matter (as described in a previous section). Water which is relatively clean on entry to the tank will usually improve in quality if allowed to sit for some time inside the tank. Bacteria entering the tank will die off rapidly if the water is clean. Algae will grow inside a tank if sufficient sunlight is available for photosynthesis. Keeping a tank dark and sited in a shady spot will prevent algae growth and also keep the water cool. The area surrounding a RWH should be kept in good sanitary condition, fenced off to prevent animals fouling the area or children playing around the tank. Any pools of water gathering around the tank should be drained. Secondly, there is a need to prevent insect vectors from breeding inside the tank. In areas where malaria is present, mosquito breeding in the storage tank can cause a major problem. All tanks should be sealed to prevent insects from entering. Mosquito proof screens should be fitted to all openings. Some practitioners recommend the use of 1 to 2 teaspoons of household kerosene in a tank of water which provides a film to prevent mosquitoes settling on the water. There are several simple methods of treatment for water before drinking. * Boiling water will kill any harmful bacteria which may be present * Adding chlorine in the right quantity (35ml of sodium hypochlorite per 1000 litres of water) will disinfect the water * [[Slow sand filtration]] will remove any harmful organisms when carried out properly * A recently developed technique called SODIS (SOlar DISinfection) utilises plastic bottles which are filled with water and placed in the sun for one full day. The back of the bottle is painted black. More information can be found through the Resource Section at the end of this document.
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