Posts Tagged ‘rainwater harvesting’

Rainwater Harvesting Deadline Extended and No Tariff Hike

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

Rainwater Harvesting is mandatory and May 27 was deadline to compulsorily fix rainwater harvesting in your house. All houses measuring over 60×40 ft were told to compulsorily install the equipment to save rainwater. The BWSSB has extended deadline of Rainwater Harvesting  by two months. The decision to extend the deadline for rainwater harvesting came after there were demands from residents to give them some more time to install the system.

BWSSB has postponed the move to hike the water tariff only after monsoon sets in. Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) in-charge minister Katta Subramanya Naidu said: “With the city facing shortage of water, we have postponed the move to hike the water tariff. We are now looking at implementing the hike only after monsoon sets in. After summer, you can expect hike in water tariff.’’

Stating that harvesting rainwater would be the best solution to mitigate water shortage in Bangalore, Katta said that recycled rainwater would be supplied to the city. To implement this plan, BWSSB plans to create six artificial lakes — two in Vrushabavathi Valley, two in Bellandur valley, one in Anekal and one in Hoskote. “Each lake will be developed in 1,300 acres. The estimated cost for the project is Rs 4,500 crore. Besides, the existing 135 lakes will also be used for this. Rainwater will be collected in the lakes and supplied to the city,” he said.

Source: Times of India


Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in News | No Comments »

Right time to dig recharge wells

Thursday, April 8th, 2010

Now that rainwater harvesting has become mandatory in Bangalore, this is the time to dig recharge wells. The law states that the depths should be a minimum of 10 feet. In most parts of the city, a depth of 20 feet to 30 feet is recommended.

All individual households, apartments, layouts, industries and institutions can construct recharge wells and should appropriately include it as part of the design itself. In many cases the groundwater levels increase almost immediately after a rainfall year and this water is available for supplementary and appropriate use. In many cases borewells too are benefited as the shallow aquifer eventually recharges the secondary porosity from where borewells draw water.

A typical recharge well is one meter in diameter. It is then lined with pre-cast concrete rings with perforations to allow water to slip out from the sides. These rings are then gradually lowered into the well to line it from the bottom all the way to the ground level and above. A solid cover of steel or pre-cast concrete rings is placed on the top for security and safety purpose. This is very important.

The capacity of such a recharge well of one meter diameter and six meters depth is about 5,000 liters. Normal procedures for well maintenance, such as regular cleaning and disinfection annually, are recommended. Removal of silt regularly helps in greater recharge. By integrating rainwater harvesting with groundwater recharge each citizen can contribute to the cause by using water judiciously and ensure its continued availability for future.

Source: The Hindu

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Bangalore, News | 1 Comment »

Government has sought to hike the penalty amount

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

The Government has sought to hike the penalty amount on all types of offenses, including tampering of meter, connection to the Board sewer without  permission, execution of work by any person other than a licensed plumber and constructing a building without drains.

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage and Certain other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2009, tabled in the Legislative Assembly,seeks to enhance the penalties on various offenses under the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) Act.The bill also seeks to empower the Board to insist house owners to adopt water conservation methods.

Illegal use and wastage of drinking water and tampering of meters will soon attract severe punishment. Presently there is no provision to imprison an offender. New bill includes a penalty of imprisonment from six month to three years if water is wasted or misused. Board has been empowered to insist on the building owner to adopt water-conservation methods like rainwater harvesting and recycling of waste water for potable purposes.The bill is yet to be debated in the assembly.

The amendment to the Bill also brings developers of apartments and high-rise buildings in BBMP area to pay pro-rata charges (proportionate charges) towards cost of improvement of water and sewerage systems levied by the board from time to time.

Source : Deccan Herald

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in News | No Comments »

Rainwater Harvesting opened a new window of employment to plumbers

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) appears to have opened a new window of employment to plumbers, who are in huge demand.There are approximately 60,000 houses which need to implement the system in Bangalore by May 2010, and 8,000 of them have already implemented it, according to BWSSB.

Each project can cost from Rs 4,000 to about Rs 40,000, which includes the material and labour cost. BWSSB is also trying to get the 12.5% VAT exempted from materials required for rainwater harvesting.The mandatory clause will be applicable for all new structures on a sital area measuring 1,200 sqft (30×40) and above, in the case of existing structures, it will be applicable for those built on a sital area of 2,400 sqft (40×60) and above.

When the order was issued, there were hardly any plumbers to do the skilled job, now there are around 400 plumbers trained by BWSSB, Karnataka State Council for Science and Technologies (KSCST) and IISc, and are available to implement the system wherever required. NGOs like Samvada are also training youth. “Around 10 youth trained by Samvada are busy meeting the demands of several calls. Their charges are site-specific and they specialize in rooftop rainwater harvesting for houses, hospitals, factories or any commercial establishments”-said program associate, Samvada, Satish K S.

The training process for rainwater harvesting will continue for the next three years. From April, another 500 will be trained and certified. Anyone can take up this training, and no formal qualification is required. As of now, BWSSB’s registered plumbers are being trained.

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has proposed relaxation of Value Added Tax (VAT) for filters intended to motivate the public to opt for RWH before the May 27 deadline. To motivate plumbers to carry out Rain Water Harvesting (RWH), BWSSB has announced cash incentives if they attain specific targets.

Source: Times of India

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Bangalore, News | 3 Comments »