Institute of Hydraulics and Rural Water Management, University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Muthgasse 18, 1190, Vienna, Austria.
J Water Health. 2010 Jun;8(2):334-45. doi: 10.2166/wh.2009.030. Epub 2009 Nov 9.
Given the possibility of waterborne diseases caused by inappropriate rainwater harvesting systems, a survey was conducted in Uganda to assess existing knowledge of both physical and non-physical measures that safeguard harvested rainwater. Households who had received rainwater tanks were assessed on issues related to harvested rainwater quality. The study shows that 84% of respondents were aware of various sources of rainwater contamination, but only 5% were aware that they needed to adjust use of rainwater, depending on whether they cleaned the tank or not. Most of the respondents were not aware that gutter cleaning was necessary to improve water quality. Indeed, as the water from the collection surface is channelled through gutters, a number of measures need to be taken to control the entry of contaminations and subsequent growth of pathogens in the tank, e.g. first flush diverts, installation of filters, chemical use and mesh cleaning. The majority, however, did not take adequate care of the gutters and this impacts on health and social livelihood. Overall, the findings emphasize the need to provide more information to households when installing water harvesting tanks to ensure that the harvested rainwater is of high quality.
鉴于不当的雨水收集系统可能导致水传播疾病，乌干达进行了一项调查，以评估现有的物理和非物理措施，以保护收集的雨水。对已经安装雨水箱的家庭进行了与收集雨水质量相关的问题评估。研究表明，84%的受访者意识到了各种雨水污染的来源，但只有 5%的受访者意识到他们需要根据是否清洁水箱来调整雨水的使用。大多数受访者没有意识到需要清理排水沟来提高水质。事实上，由于收集表面的水通过排水沟输送，需要采取一系列措施来控制污染物的进入和随后在水箱中病原体的生长，例如初次冲洗分流、安装过滤器、使用化学物质和网格清洁。然而，大多数人并没有对排水沟进行充分的清理，这对健康和社会生活产生了影响。总的来说，调查结果强调了在安装雨水收集箱时需要向家庭提供更多信息，以确保收集的雨水质量高。
