Rainwater harvesting systems' potential success in rural Kenyan farming villages

¶ … Rainwater Harvesting Systems in Farming Villages in Kenya

The purpose of this research is to examine the potential success for implementing rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems within areas in rural Kenya. SAMCAN advocates will focus on the implementation of such systems to help provide access to healthy water for both residential and agricultural purposes. Moreover, staff will focus on educating the local residents of these villages on how to use and benefit from RWH systems. In order to test the success of these implementations, the research will survey the opinions of local residents through interviews, which will then be followed up with a statistical analysis of agricultural productivity after the systems have been put in place. Expected results should show a clear increase in productivity in these regions, therefore justifying the cost and efforts of implementing them in areas where they are direly needed.

Introduction

The SAMCAN Development Network takes great pride in working with local communities in order to create viable solutions for major water problems. Since the organization was established in 1995, it has focused on creating innovative solutions to global water problems and generating effective sustainable resources that will empower local communities and provide them with healthy and accessible water. This current research is another implementation of feasible water solutions in order to better provide for developing communities.

Literature Review

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) essentially includes the collection, storage, and proper use of natural rainwater as a primary source of water in agricultural and residential contexts (Fewkes, 2006). Strategies most often consist of a roof surface that is used to funnel rain runoff which is then transported to a storage location, most often a reservoir (Gould & Nissen-Peterson, 1999). Here, the research suggests that the greatest cost in implementing such RWH systems is in storing water resources after collection (Thomas, 2011). Water collected is often stored in underground tanks which are covered to prevent evaporation and the presence of disease-carrying mosquitoes. Then, there is a need for some method for water extraction. There are currently a number of relevant examples of communities using collected rainwater as a primary source for providing water for agriculture, flood control, and emergency usage in fighting fires (Gould & Nissen-Peterson, 1999). Harvested rainwater is used for providing both drinkable and non-drinkable water. Surveying the research available does show a long history of collecting rainwater for use on both smaller and large scale applications (Leggett et al., 2006). However, implementations on a large scale agricultural application are not as documented.

There are a number of clearly documented benefits for various local communities adopting RWH systems. Such systems provide crucial access to better quality water sources. Yet, drinking water is only a fraction of the water consumed (Thomas, 2011). Thus, RWH would serve to benefit other methods for consumption as well, including agricultural and other residential water demands. Agricultural implementations are not as discussed in the current dialogue revolving around RWH systems (Boers & Ben-Asher, 1982). There are also financial benefits in terms of cutting costs of traditional water treatment facilities. This helps local communities become less dependent on a centralized water treatment facility that can limit access to clean water and allows for greater exploitation of the natural resources in order to provide the tools needed to thrive. For implementation of RWH systems to be successful, it is extremely crucial for designers to take into account the social and cultural aspects of how that collected water will eventually be used by the local community (Jeffrey & Gearey, 2006). Culturally insensitive designs can lead to massive failures, with the RWH systems failing to be beneficial for the residents of the rural communities in need.

Objectives to RWH systems often involve concerns regarding public health. Possible contaminants could impact the quality of the water harvested. Run off of chemicals from the roofing structures that are used to collect the rain water (Thomas, 2001). Yet, there is very little research positing that effective RWH systems pose health risks. When systems are designed and maintained correctly, the water harvested through rain collecting meets the health standards and guidelines. Basic filtration processes are often conducted through coarse filtration, which has been shown to have little adverse health affects on residents relying on collected rainwater (Fewkes, 2006). One example is the use of kitchen filters and sand as a filtration method. Essentially, "the essence of rainwater harvesting is the interception of precipitation before it gets dirtied," (Thomas, 2001). Such filtration techniques have proven successful in providing better quality water. Research shows that fecal coliform levels on record in such systems have rarely gone above 4 per 100ml; "a tolerable figure in tropical rural areas although unacceptable in a European urban society," (Thomas, 2001). Overall, roof water is most often cleaner than other alternative sources of water.

Research Method

Data will be collected over the three years that the project will be taking place within the context of three separate villages in Kenya, Nakuru, Kisumu, and Eldoret. Each implementation in each of the different villages will have three experts and three volunteers on site with backgrounds in engineering, community development, and education. After construction and implementation of these systems in each village, interviews of members of the local communities will help provide qualitative data using scale responses from 1-5 to test the satisfaction of the RWH system that was put into place. Moreover, a follow up analysis of agricultural productivity will include a quantitative survey of agriculture productivity levels in the regions being examined. This will focus on evaluating agricultural products being sold within the next year following the implementation of the system in order to test whether or not the system has been effective in increasing overall productivity, and therefore being a cost effective solution to water shortage problems in the region.

Still, there are potential threats to validity. Kenya is a semi-arid landscape (Haile, 2005). Research shows that there were over ten droughts were recorded in Kenya between 1970 and 2004 (Haile, 2005). This could jeopardize the study and manipulate data to show the RWH systems as ineffective for meeting local needs based on the possibility of less than desirable rainfall. The water collected could not be enough to justify costs associated with implementing RWH systems. In order to combat this, the construction of the RWH systems must be completed before the dry season in each year established.

It will also be incredibly important to promote ethical handling of the research. Since this is involving the livelihoods of real individuals, it is important to design RWH systems that are culturally sensitive to their individual needs. Ethical guidelines would need to be set in order to promote design and training in culturally sensitive ways. Individuals interviewed should be allowed to remain anonymous and receive the final results before publication.

Preliminary Results

It will be crucial to educate the local communities on how to use the system to their advantage for providing healthy water for farming and daily living purposes. To preserve the autonomous identity of these villages by empowering them with the tools they need to successfully provide the water each community will need. The research will need to focus on empowering local communities with the capabilities of providing for themselves. Currently, Sub-Saharan Africa receives millions of dollars annually in foreign aid (Haile, 2005). It is a primary goal of this research to find ways to reduce that dependence on foreign aid. The research will promote an increase overall agricultural productivity because of access to clean water. In addition, it will help improve farming methods and health of livestock so that those within the communities will be able to maximize benefits of the system and allow the local residents to supplement their income. According to the research, "There is a growing awareness of the increased need for water harvesting and of its potential," (Boer & Ben-Asher, 1982). In order to meet Millennium Development Goals for providing safe and healthy water for drinking and agricultural purposes, the research is testing a potentially viable solution for providing better quality water resources for local farmers and villagers (Kahinda et al., 2007). This will then reduce pressure on currently relied upon water resources and help increase autonomy for local villages by giving them independent solutions they can use to benefit their own livelihoods in the regions of Nakuru, Kisumu, and Eldoret, which already have long histories of being self-sufficient.

Conclusion

It is important for modern discourse to diversify the strategies used to combat real world problems. The lack of water availability is a serious issue, and one which should not be intensifying at the rate it is. In order to help provide for the citizens of the world, this research aims to test the credibility of RWH systems in residential and agricultural contexts. In doing so, the research aims to help increase the available tools for fighting major international problems that could impact the success of many developing nations.