Rainwater harvesting
AGAINST the backdrop of falling of city water table by three metres every year, and ever rising demand for water because of population pressure, rainwater harvesting by the city dwellers has been offered as a viable option by experts. We take note of the fact that rainwater would be able to meet 15 percent of the annual water demand in the capital and we believe that would come as a big relief if implemented properly. These facts and figures were revealed in a recently held seminar on 'Urban Rain Water Harvesting for Domestic Use and Groundwater Recharge' jointly organised by the Institute of Architects Bangladesh and WaterAid Bangladesh.
It has been suggested in the seminar that residents of a building would store water during rain on the roof in a scientific manner and use it for domestic purpose at a later time, which would ultimately lessen the dependence on ground water that is pumped out on a daily basis by WASA. According to Dhaka WASA, about 87 percent of the supply water comes from groundwater; therefore, apprehending greater demand in the near future, it has started to look for various alternative sources of water.
With the rivers around the metropolis drying up and other water bodies being filled up by the developers, and groundwater table of the city going below every year, it needs no emphasising that the officials and experts concerned must hasten the implementation process of rooftop rainwater harvesting. Understandably, the new option calls for educating the residents through undertaking massive awareness programmes and in this regard all the available media, such as, newspaper, television and radio could be used to dissseminate the message. We hope the departments concerned will soon begin the mass awareness campaign.
It remains to be said that no city, especially no capital city, can survive for long if acute water shortage remains unresolved for years together. The government of the day remains pledge-bound to provide water to the citizens. We, therefore, want to see actions taken without much ado and at the earliest.
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