TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Nothing makes Brad Lancaster happier than a monsoon downpour.
The tall 58-year-old jumped like a kid in the puddles on the sidewalk one recent August afternoon after a half inch of rain suddenly fell in Tucson, Ariz., during an especially dry summer.
“Sweet!” Lancaster exclaimed, beaming when he saw how the water pooled in a basin he had dug earlier in dirt planted with native vegetation along the public walkway.
“It’s really important that you are ready to plant the rain when it comes, even if it is a small amount,” he said, referring to a simple type of rainwater harvesting that involves digging a hole to allow rainwater to sink underground and be held like a sponge. “The key is to collect every drop of it.”
In the Southwest and beyond, home gardeners and landscapers are increasingly using collected rainwater to nourish their rose bushes and cactus gardens amid worsening drought and rising temperatures fueled by global warming.
Lancaster and other rainwater harvesting specialists say home gardeners anywhere can benefit from collecting raindrops and runoff from buildings and other surfaces to irrigate plants, even in wetter regions where the practice is less common.
Rainwater collecting is widespread in many of Earth’s driest regions. In Australia, it’s often used for drinking water, bathing and flushing toilets. In Africa — where Lancaster said he learned more about the practice — it helps communities survive.
Saving the rain is also useful in southern Arizona, which is under pressure from a long-running drought. It’s drier than ever, with Tucson receiving less than half of the about seven inches of rain it usually sees by the first week of September.
Some of the heaviest rainfalls in Arizona and other parts of the Southwest occur in the summer, during the annual North American monsoon season.
As much as two-thirds of residential water in the desert city is used outdoors, said Adriana Zuniga, an associate research professor in environmental policy programs at the University of Arizona.
“The idea is to use less water from the tap to irrigate,” she said.
Rainwater harvesting is by no means a modern revolution.
Zuniga, who has researched water use of the Maya people who lived in what is now Central America and southeastern Mexico, noted that the ancient civilization captured rainwater to survive dry, hot summers.
“It should be fundamental to how we live in the Southwest and ultimately everywhere else in the coming years in the face of climate change,” said Tucson landscaper Eli Nielsen, who co-owns a store that sells rainwater harvesting products including rain chains that guide water from atop buildings.
Anyone interested in rainwater harvesting is recommended to see if their state has restrictions on harvesting or requires a permit due to environmental or health and safety considerations.
A tool created by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in collaboration with the Federal Energy Management Program is available for assistance.
City and county water departments may also have programs that encourage rainwater harvesting or have other resources. Local community colleges or cooperative extension offices may have educational programs offering guidance.
