Rainwater harvesting
In the Palestinian Territories, water shortage is a widespread problem. Many people do not have access to even enough water for basic household use, let alone for growing food. The World Health Organisation recommends a minimum of 100 litres per person per day to maintain a decent standard of living. The average supply in the West Bank over the last few years has barely topped 70 litres per person per day. In addition, over 200 000 people, mainly living in rural communities, are not connected to the water network; and of those who are connected, less than half receive an uninterrupted supply. Learn more about the water situation....
Anybody can harvest rainwater and store it for use in the home, the garden, or both. It costs money and energy to transport water over long distances; so rainwater harvest can help the environment, save money and increase peoples’ water access.
At Bustan Qaraaqa we are developing systems to harvest rooftop and road runoff and store it in cisterns or metal tanks for household use and for irrigation. We hope to become water-independent during the winter months, helping both the environment and our wallets; whereas in the summer, the storage capacity we have built up will help us and our crops to survive the frequent water cut-offs that are a feature of life in Palestine.
Water for growing plants can also be stored in the soil. We are using simple swales to increase soil soakage, aid soil accumulation and prevent soil erosion. The swale is a ditch that is built along the contour line of a slope. On the downhill side of the ditch is a mound. When water flows downhill, it carries dissolved soil particles and nutrients with it, stripping the soil from the slope. However, if there are swales on the slope, the water falls into the ditch and is halted, spreading out along the contour line. The water soaks down into the soil, instead of running along the surface, and as it does so it deposits the load of nutrients and soil particles it is carrying. This makes more water and nutrients available to plants, at no extra cost to the farmer.
Learn more about rainwater harvesting.....