The Neighbour's Water Tank

September was dry - October is dry - the neighbours put in a water tank to save their garden. Well that should multiply their water supply times 4 - the garden is a small part of the site when you are in units. And they had a problem with access - the tank is too heavy to lift over the garage - so the best thing was to bring it in my back gate - before the studio is built - in the window of opportunity as it were. It all worked like a charm - in fact you couldn't tell that anyone had been through the place... and there's the water tank sitting under the eaves waiting for the heavens to open.
The sweet thing was they brought me some flowers to say thank you.... bless them - ephemeral beauty of the soul. I hope their garden prospers.

I wonder

what would it cost per household for council to harvest rainwater and to sewer mine and to provide a reticulated system of rescued water for toilet flushing and garden watering? Currently grey water diverting and treatment (if you want to store it for more than 24 hours) would cost around $10,000 per household - not a very attractive proposition. Individual pumps would be less economical in initial purchase and in running costs (on green power of course) than neighbourhood or municipality wide methods of providing sufficient pressure.

Private gardens represent a valuable resource for the community: they sequester carbon, they provide a creative outlet for gardeners, they provide visual delight for all who see them, a harbour for birds, and a cultural resource.. can we afford not to have a community based water source to maintain them?

Well here it is: CSIRO is working on the integrated management of urban water http://www.csiro.au/science/ps3k3.html bring it on!