Rainwater Harvesting

 

This week I went to visit Brad Lancaster, the water management expert who wrote Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond. He has made his home into a sustainability demonstration.  Brad especially likes passive systems, such as using curb cuts to allow stormwater to reach landscaping, or using tree shade to cool interior space. 

His washing machine gets its water from the cisterns that store rainwater during monsoon season. The gray water is then used to water his trees. Brad has been instrumental in changing water policy in Arizona and internationally to allow and encourage gray water use.  He maintains a website that inspires people with tips for reducing water use, carbon footprint and energy consumption: http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/

He uses landscaping as a tool to shade and cool his house in the summer and keep it warm in the winter. The shade clothes will be removed in winter and the awnings are retractable for winter use.

This is the sun powered calendar he uses to demonstrate why his awning is in the position it is in. It marks the angle of the sunlight during seasonal solstices and equinoxes.

Brad’s toilet is part of a University of Arizona study by Dr. Gerba about the efficacy of composting to remove pathogens and turn feces into fertile soil that would be safe to grow food in. With carbon from sawdust and toilet paper, it doesn’t even smell. He has 4 55gal buckets, and rotates about once every three months. After a year or so, poop and sawdust have turned into soil. I was amused by the flytraps that he uses.