Rainwater Harvesting for Future Water Safety

Scarcity of fresh water has been an ever-present issue for the residents of Kathmandu.
Moreover, depletion of groundwater is decreasing access to water in many ways. The
tenants are forced to keep shifting as the homeowners ration the limited water due to
lower supply from municipal supply and boring. This problem is going to increase unless it is
given a high priority and dealt properly.

Nepal is moving towards the path of development in all fields such as infrastructure,
medicine, technology and many more. One way or another, all of these activities and all of
us require water. So our concern from now on should also be on water safety, especially on
replenishing groundwater reserve of Kathmandu. More than 50% supply of water in
Kathmandu is done by ground source. According to Cresswell et al (2001), our consumption
rate is 20 times more than recharge and at this pace our reserves would diminish within 100
years.

As the water supply and demand situation of capital is sensitive and dreadful, people are
highly dependent upon ground water. This has caused huge stress on aquifers of the valley.
Almost all households in Kathmandu depends on tube well, boring and other methods to
withdraw water from below. The study conducted in 1990 by JICA suggested sustainable
draw rate of 0.027 Million meter cubes per day.

Many of us depend upon ground water for almost all water related activities including
drinking. Authorities are also extracting ground water to supply over taps and irrigation.
Some densely populated areas of Kathmandu valley are already showing bad signs. People
are needed to increase boring depth by significant height and Dhungedharas are drying out.
Ground Subsidence is also a negative impact of decrease of water table. According to a data
on “Kathmandu Valley Groundwater Outlook” from AIT, the average water level decline is
about 1-4m per year since 1984. The hydrological cycle keeps the water tables recharged
with its ways like percolation after rain but the system is imbalanced when recharge is far
less than consumption.

The situation is similar with our neighbor India due to similar consumption pattern,
population grown and overexploitation trend. India’s NITI Aayog’s Composite Water
Management Index report of 2018 says that by 2020 major cities like Delhi, Bangalore and
Hyderabad will reach state of zero ground water level. Over the top, these Indian cities also
have very low water supply through municipal taps similar to Nepal. Both countries have
uncontrolled rampant boring for private, institutional and agricultural use. NITI Aayog
clearly portrays that India is suffering the worst water crisis in history and by this we can
imagine how the scenario could be in Nepal as well.
Rainwater Harvesting as the Savior: Few NGOs, INGOs and individuals are working to solve
this issue. Their solution is mainly to recharge the groundwater by rain water harvesting.
Most of rainfall water makes its way to drain and rivers but it can be easily used to replenish
our water reserve. This free source of water certainly can save our reserves if we implement
them carefully.

When rain water falls to the ground, it percolates down to water table through voids and
goes to aquifers but due to tiles, cement, asphalt and concrete structures everywhere, the
water is not going where it should naturally go. The organizations have placed recharge pit
and wells in high tension zones. They have made rain water harvesting solutions at home
using simple roof, gutter, collectors and PVC pipes. Thus collected water is sent to a small
well or pit which absorbs water and sends it to underground aquifers.

Some of those projects can be found in Pulchowk, Balkumari and Patan areas. The changes
and results were seen within a year. Ground water level rose significantly and people could
enjoy water from locality more easily. These small projects show that eminent problem can
be solved with little investment. Even the old ponds of Kathmandu valley can act as good
recharge point if they don’t have concrete floor at the bottom.

We need to plan and implement similar solutions as soon as possible. Organizations in Nepal
are doing the possible with their effort but government also needs to implement new
policies to ensure we are on right track to save our future. In India the populated metro
cities are facing high tension. Bangalore has similar case, so the government is pushing
people towards rain water harvesting. The households who don’t have rain water harvesting
should pay penalty with their water bill. This rule was implemented in Bangalore on May 1,
2016.

Detail and more accurate study are essential for Kathmandu to understand the situation and
find better solutions. Also the recharge should be carefully done or else problems such are
waterlogging might occur. New infrastructure development roadmap of our country should
be able to accommodate measures to ensure water safety for the future of generations to
come. Water is our precious property and resource thus it is our responsibility to protect
such asset. Groundwater is a reserve with most valuable element of life. So we need to think
about its protection and do the necessary and help as far as possible to ensure the safety of
water and safety of future.

Abhishek Chand