What is it about?
Rainwater harvesting is an ancient practice aiming to cover water needs for domestic, irrigation and livestock uses. In this study, the rainwater harvesting tank size was investigated to meet 5 water need levels of a mixed goat-sheep farm using a daily water balance method. This method was applied using daily rainfall data for a period of 16 years from 6 meteorological stations in selected regions of Greece, characterized by different rainfall regime and well developed livestock activity, taking into account, among other parameters, the water needs of animals, the rainwater collection area and the runoff coefficient.
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Why is it important?
We investigate the rainwater harvesting tank size to meet the water needs of a mixed goat-sheep farm in Greece using a daily water balance model. Some significant findings are: a) the rainwater tank capacity is strongly affected by local conditions of the study area and cannot be fully standardized, b) the required rainwater tank volume is increased as the dry period increases and can be decreased by increasing the rainwater collection area and decreasing reliability and c) very high values of reliability (95%) can be obtained with tank sizes ranging from 10 to 85 m3.
Perspectives
While there is extensive research on rainwater harvesting tank sizing for domestic use there is a lack of relevant research in the case of livestock, which can be a significant economic sector in several areas. A critical factor for the viability of a livestock farm is the adequate amount of water in both quantity and quality. Meeting of water requirements in livestock farms has always been a serious problem, since they are usually located in remote and/or mountainous areas and away from water supply networks. A sustainable solution to this problem is a rainwater harvesting system with a tank which should not be very large due to the high construction cost, but also should not be too small, given the risk of not meeting the water demand.
Dr Paraskevi Londra
Agricultural University of Athens
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Assessment of rainwater harvesting tank size for livestock use, Water Science & Technology Water Supply, July 2017, IWA Publishing,
DOI: 10.2166/ws.2017.136.
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