Feasibility of rainwater harvesting in north Georgia's humid climate

With the growing implementation of active rainwater harvesting systems in large scale building projects in the southeast, the question of what value these systems provide in a humid climate is raised. A water budget model has been developed to provide an analysis of water supply and demand for a sample design site located in northern Georgia. Using historical precipitation and potential evapotranspiration data for two years (a wet year and a dry year), along with the catchment area, irrigation area and soil type of the design site, the value provided by an active rainwater harvesting system with cistern storage in the temperate southeast can be evaluated. The model generated, in the form of spreadsheets and charts, demonstrates the limits of the physical feasibility of such a system and can guide the design process toward practical choices.