Water Savings and Rainwater Harvesting – Pilot Project in Ireland

A pilot project to harvest rainwater was set up in Ireland in 2005 to examine the potential of using rainwater harvesting systems to replace treated mains water, for non-potable uses. The Project has two strands to it. The agricultural application assessed the feasibility of incorporating rainwater supply to supplement/replace mains or other water supplies for farms. The second strand involves rural water supply to domestic dwellings. Here the project installed rainwater harvesting and water conservation devices as part of a pilot project to assess the reduction in domestic demand. This paper will examine the water use recorded on both sites. It will present the findings of flow monitoring carried out on the agricultural site. Water savings will be presented in terms of rainwater volumes substituted for mains water, and in terms of economic savings, to the enduser and to the water producer. Water use will be compared with existing data available on water use on the farm. In the domestic situation, baseline results from non-rainwater harvesting houses monitored as part of the project will be compared with results from those fitted with rainwater harvesting. Water savings will be presented and discussed in terms of volume reduction in public water use and economic savings to user and producer.