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The feasibility of rainwater harvesting systems in Aruba
Diaz-Maroto Knöfler, Yanina amos-Monzón, Marta Ståhlberg, Sara Coelman, Ilse Montoya Rodriguez, Yoshi Negrini, Gemma
Diaz-Maroto Knöfler, Yanina
amos-Monzón, Marta
Ståhlberg, Sara
Coelman, Ilse
Montoya Rodriguez, Yoshi
Negrini, Gemma
Promotor / Advisor
Keyword
Location research
Aruba
Date
2024-04-12
License
Publisher
University of Aruba/Utrecht University
Language
en
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ISBN
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Abstract
Aruba faces water scarcity due to its arid climate (Van Sambeek et al., 2000). Freshwater is currently supplied by the desalination plant; however, this method poses sustainability problems. The desalination process has a high carbon footprint, as it is powered by heavy fuel oil (Matos et al., 2024). Additionally, the marine ecosystems that surround the island are impacted negatively by this process (Marchena & Halman, 2018). Furthermore, water security can be compromised when the supply relies only on one water source and been vulnerable to external shocks. Moreover, the cost of water is relatively high (del Campo et al., 2023). To tackle this problem, a consultancy project has been done for Santa Rosa, the local name for the department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries. Their goal is to eventually renounce the reliance on produce imports by increasing awareness about the importance of and supporting local production. One of their already existing services is the distribution of harvested rainwater.
The client strives for more sustainable water use to tackle the challenges mentioned above and to increase the water supply to meet the high demand of water for the farmers reducing and increase the resilience of the water production process. It is aimed to achieve this by integrating rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems in the existing water infrastructure in Aruba. Furthermore, there is interest in using rainwater from Santa Rosa and the general society, as more information on the practice of RWH has been requested from the members of Santa Rosa, and the research has shown positive perspectives within the Aruban community.
However, to date, no publicly available studies on RWH systems in Aruba have been conducted, and only a few studies on this topic have been conducted in similar, semi-arid, regions. This shows the lack of data available on this topic that would help Santa Rosa’s goal of implementing RWH. Additionally, this research found that despite interest in RWH systems, there is a lack of awareness regarding the collection of rainwater. Therefore, this research gives practical, informative and feasible advice to Santa Rosa on the future implementation of RWH systems in Aruba. This will give the client an idea of which actions they have to undertake, why these actions are recommended and how they should proceed. Three main advice are given in this report:
1. Improve communication within the community of Aruba
2. Incorporate RWH systems in urban infrastructure, using community-based RWH
3. Combine proper use of natural water ways with the implementation of RWH systems
These recommendations are supported by research findings from two different approaches. Firstly, with a top-down approach, the influence and relevance of various environmental, socio-economic, and political factors on RWH systems implementation at the national level is examined. Secondly, with a bottom-up approach, an identification of the existing RWH practices, evaluation of their effectiveness, and exploration of possibilities for future implementation at the local level is carried out.
Citation
Diaz-Maroto Knöfler, Y., Ramos-Monzón, M., Ståhlberg, S., Coelman, I., Montoya Rodriguez, Y., Negrini, G. (2024, April 12). The feasibility of rainwater harvesting systems in Aruba. [Report]. University of Aruba, Utrecht University.