Performing Department
Landscape, Architecture, & Environmental Planning
Non Technical Summary
Utah, as the second driest state in the nation, is experiencing growing pressures on its scarce water resources. Several lines of force are converging to cause and exacerbate water shortages:(1) Utah has an existing pattern of excessive water use: though Utah is the second driest state in the nation it has the highest per capita use of water.(2) Utah has one of the fastest growing populations in the country and anticipates doubling the current population by 2050.(3) The American west is facing a cyclical return to drier climate conditions which will exacerbate shortages caused by an ever increasing population(4) Over-all global climate change is altering how, when, and where precipitation falls in the West.So, while water supplies are going down (or at the least becoming erratic in their availability) the population of users demanding water supply is increasing. My proposal is that if more domestic rainwater harvesting techniques and strategies were adopted, stored rainwater for landscape irrigation could act as a buffer to reduced supplies, easing domestic demand, and helping to take pressure off agriculture and industry. The over arching-purpose of this project is to increase the percentage of the population of Utah that has adopted rainwater harvesting techniques for domestic landscape irrigation. The main objectives in this project are:(1) using surveys to find out why so few Utahns have adopted rainwater harvesting techniques(2) use surveys and interviews to find out what has motivated early adopters of rainwater harvesting strategies in Utah(3) use surveys and interviews to find out what barriers, challenges, and difficulties early adopters have faced(4) to develop both demonstrations as well as informational and training materials to assist Utahns in the harvesting, storage, and reuse of rainwater for domestic irrigation uses.The importance of this research to agriculture or rural life is this: population growth along the Wasatch Front and the I-15 corridor in Utah and its attendant urbanization is placing tremendous pressure on Utah's agricultural producers. As population continues to grow, more agricultural land gives way to urban sprawl in Utah. In addition to the loss of acreage, every gallon of water resources used for a domestic landscape is a gallon not available for remaining agricultural production. Harvesting, storing, and reusing rainfall for domestic landscapes on a wide-spread basis (urban, suburban, and rural) will reduce pressure on a scarce resource. The reason for conducting the research is that while we can speculate why adoption of rainwater harvest and reuse lags, without knowing precisely why, efforts to increase adoption could be misdirected and counter productive. We don't know what the barriers to adoption are. This research will attempt to reveal them. The results of this project could advance public welfare by (1) clarifying the direction public policy might take in efforts to preserve this scare resource; (2) aid the public by providing information and training about rainwater harvesting.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
65%
Applied
35%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
O-1: perform background research on the topic of RWH, both historic and current applications in both in the American West and internationally. This background research will include a generic economic analysis on the return on investment in the use of RWH. This will be tied to geographic location as well - a site that receives eight inches of precipitation will have a different time to return on investment than will a site that receives 20 inches of precipitation annually. Target completion 12/16.O-2: begin to craft the survey instruments for both Utah's early adopters (EA) and non-adopters (NA) Target: Fall 2016O-3: conduct the EA and NA surveys and statistically process the collected data. Target Spring 2017; Deliverable: Paper and/or thesis describing process and results.O-4:conduct further questionnaires/interviews and surveys with a smaller pool of EA to discover what techniques and strategies used in their RWH systems. These further questionnaires and interviews will be with a subset of the early adopter respondents who in the first survey indicated a willingness to share their experiences in RWH. These additional surveys will be conducted in person, should include tours and demonstrations of their systems, and photo documentation.There are four areas specifically where we hope to uncover answers: (1) We want to look especially at what problems they have encountered (whether technical, procedural, or social) and what they perceive as barriers to RWH adoption. (2) How have freezing winter temperatures been addressed in harvesting and storage. (3) Another finding we're hoping to uncover is whether there's a clear relationship between the amount of rainwater harvested and the area of domestic landscape that can be developed. Lastly, (4) we want to see what other strategies have they adopted that involve water use - e.g. low water use landscapes, plant selection, agricultural production, etc. We will use a grounded theory approach for these interviews, using coding and content analysis to identify patterns of use and methodology.Target Fall 2017 Deliverables: Paper and/or ThesisO-5: create a RWH demonstration installation on the USU Logan campus at either the LAEP House or at the LAEP Field Studio. Target Date: Fall 2017. Deliverable: built work documented in a paper and/or thesisO-6: begin to collect data to measure and quantify the amount of water harvested and how it was used in the landscape. Target date: Spring 2018 - Fall 2019
Project Methods
Methods include surveys of early adopters as well as non-adopters, in-depth interviews with early adopters, documentation of best-practices in RWH, and the design and installation of a demonstration system.