| Fresh-squeezed Cloud Juice - That is what the | | | | Hays and western Travis Counties will not have |
| sign said at Tank Town, which is the only place in | | | | water available to them from a local provider. A |
| the country I know of that sells bottled rain | | | | new well can easily cost $15,000. That money can |
| water. This is a place to the west of Dripping | | | | go a long way with a rainfall harvesting system. |
| Springs, TX that has metal roofs to collect rainfall | | | | Say a school district is building a new high school. |
| and tanks to store it. I love it, but there is a lot | | | | There will probably be fields for baseball, football, |
| more to the story than good bottled water. | | | | soccer and softball and all of them will need to be |
| The folks at Tank Town have a novelty, but the | | | | watered. Think about the surface area of the |
| idea didn't come from the desire for a catchy | | | | roof of a high school. The school must have at |
| slogan or better tasting water - those were just | | | | least the same amount (or more) roof area as a |
| a couple of side benefits. Richard Heinichen got | | | | football field. A football field, including the end |
| the idea of collecting rainfall to sell as bottled | | | | zones, has about 57,600 square feet of surface |
| water while installing rainfall collection systems. As | | | | area. If a school has that much, just how much |
| water becomes more scarce and in higher | | | | rain water could be collected in a year? Probably |
| demand as rural areas grow, rainfall harvesting is | | | | much more than could be stored. Could a high |
| one of the most practical ways to supply a home | | | | school rely on collected rainfall for all its needs? |
| with water. Not only homes, but businesses too | | | | Doubtful, but it certainly would reduce the amount |
| can benefit from rainfall harvesting. | | | | that would need to be purchased from a city or |
| According to Heinichen, you can capture about | | | | county. |
| 550 gallons of water if one inch of rain falls on a | | | | Look at Home Depot or Lowe's. They are huge |
| 1000 square foot collection surface. Think a little | | | | and they both have garden centers. Why pay for |
| more about this. How much surface area does | | | | water that has chlorine and fluoride in it when |
| the roof on a house have? How about a barn or | | | | they could use rain water in their garden centers? |
| a shed? What about a school or a Home Depot? | | | | Another benefit is that the rainfall being harvested |
| If you're in Dripping Springs or many other parts | | | | wouldn't make it onto the pavement, meaning it |
| of central Texas, you know that you will average | | | | wouldn't run into the detention pond. |
| somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 inches of | | | | Growth in the Austin and Dripping Springs area is |
| rainfall each year. Several thousand feet of | | | | going to be huge over the next 10 years and |
| surface area can catch a lot of water. This water | | | | beyond. Our local water resources will not be able |
| can be used for irrigation and for household use | | | | to keep up with the growth. Conservation |
| including drinking (with proper treatment). | | | | measures will have to go into effect for Lake |
| As more homes are being built around Dripping | | | | Travis and the Edwards Aquifer. Anyone building a |
| Springs and in northern Hays and western Travis | | | | home or commercial property who has the room |
| Counties, the demand for water has put a strain | | | | for the storage tanks should seriously consider |
| on the supply. The Edwards Aquifer is seeing | | | | harvesting rainfall. |
| higher and higher demand. The local lakes can only | | | | Fresh-squeezed Cloud Juice is a registered |
| hold so much water. In the extended drought | | | | trademark and is used with the permission of |
| we're in, wells have been running dry in some | | | | Tank Town. |
| areas. Many people buying real estate in northern | | | | |
