Investigating the feasibility of use of harvested rainwater as a portable water supply source in schools: a case study of Kampala

Abstract

The provision of sustainable amounts of quality water is a vital public health and economic problem in the world particularly among developing countries. Rain water harvesting has been highlighted as a potential water supply option available to alleviate the water demand pressure on urban centralized sources like the National water pipeline. Within areas with reasonable amounts of precipitation such as the tropical areas, this practice provides cost saving on the proportion of water collected that would otherwise have been bought to satisfy the water demand requirement. In addition, rainwater is noted as a clean water source where the design, operation and maintenance of the system is properly managed. Otherwise, contamination is inherent along the collection and storage of the water before it is used. This paper elaborates on the feasibility of use of rainwater harvesting at the current level of adoption in schools within Kampala. This was done through estimation of the financial viability of its use along with careful consideration of the quality of the water as compared to the WHO and the Uganda National drinking water quality standards. In addition, the research also focuses on determination of which factors along the water harvesting system (i.e., the collection and storage) have effect on the resultant quality of the water collected. This is done so as to provide objective recommendations on how the system can be adopted for adequate quality levels while ensuring optimum utilization of the water provision potential of rainwater in the study area. Keywords: Rainwater harvesting, Financial viability of its use, Quality of the rainwater, Factors affecting the quality of the rainwater.