Framework for Assessing the Rainwater Harvesting Potential of Residential Buildings at a National Level as an Alternative Water Resource for Domestic Water Supply in Taiwan

Domestic rainwater harvesting (DRWH) is widely recognized as an alternative source of water in Taiwan because of water shortages. This suggests that rainwater potential should be maximized and quantified. In this article, we assess the potential of DRWH at a national level. To consider the climatic, building characteristic, economic, and ecological aspects of DRWH, we propose three categories: (1) theoretical; (2) available; and (3) environmental bearable rainwater potential. Four main steps were followed to develop the proposed framework: (1) Fifteen rainfall zones across Taiwan were generated through cluster analysis based on the average annual 10-day rainfall distributions of rainfall stations and administrative districts; (2) The roof area in each rainfall zone was estimated using a geographic information system (GIS) and land use classification database; (3) The weighted percentage of rainwater use in each rainfall zone was determined by the optimal point on the storage capacity and rainwater supply reliability curve for an equivalent building from each building type; (4) The percentage of the total roof area used to harvest rainwater in each region depends on the downstream impact of the stream flow. The procedures developed in this study constitute an effective tool for preliminarily estimation of the national DRWH potential.