Taiwan’s monthly precipitation varies dramatically. While a typhoon or monsoon rains can wreak havoc within a day, prolonged dry spells also lead to drought. Indeed, one of Taiwan’s major challenges is to maintain a balance between the need for flood prevention measures and preventing droughts.
The problem Taiwan faces is one shared by all island nations around the globe, where torrential rain and drought alternate within short periods of time. Accordingly, rainwater recycling has become a priority. Generally, the recycling process begins with collecting rainwater via apparatus installed on rooftops or on park lawns. Filtered and stored, the rainwater is then used for spraying or cleaning.
Furthermore, the Building Act (建築法) states that building sites should have the capacity to retain water by incorporating better on-site rainwater retention, storage and filtration facilities.
Relying on buildings to retain water, however, is obviously insufficient in itself to prevent floods. In many East and Southeast Asian countries with dense populations but poor infrastructure, buildings are also required to have underground storage tanks.
In India, for instance, storing water in the basement can help lessen the impact of serious floods. The best practice is found in the US, where cities hold builders responsible for the increased demand for drainage water produced by newly-constructed buildings. These are all good examples of leveraging buildings to prevent flooding.
The Taipei metro system was turned into a subterranean river when Typhoon Nari hit Taiwan in 2001 and flooded many parts of Greater Taipei. However, half of Taipei was spared because all the subway tunnels in the south of the city were turned into a giant emergency reservoir.
Many basements in Kaohsiung were flooded in last year’s Typhoon Fanapi. Since basements are bound to be flooded when there are torrential rains and flash floods anyway, why not plan in advance and use them as water storage tanks to prevent droughts or floods?
Think of how trees function during heavy rains. Every part of the tree, the leaves, branches, trunk and roots, retain as much water as possible. The idea is for the rain to saturate the tree itself and to be absorbed in the roots and the surrounding soil. Buildings, on the other hand, clad in concrete and steel, repel the rainwater.
The government in Taiwan is trying to increase buildings’ capacity to hold rainwater, so why not address the problem of flooding in the same way? Buildings should be designed with the capacity to store rainwater in underground reservoirs and surface storage tanks, and to have recycling equipment installed on each floor. This mechanism will absorb water swells brought by torrential rain to ease the pressure on the drainage and sewage systems, which will in turn reduce the severity of flooding elsewhere.
Tuesday was World Water Day, an opportunity for the public and private sectors to recognize Taiwan’s lack of water resources and promote water conservation.
To prepare for potential water shortages in the foreseeable future, companies can raise public awareness of water conservation by reducing the amount of water they use during their manufacturing processes. They can also encourage the public to conserve water in creative ways. For example, the Environmental Quality Protection Foundation (環境品質文教基金會) and Coca Cola recently launched a “Water Footprint Calculator” iPhone app, to raise awareness of how people can manage their water consumption.
Liu Chun-ming is chairman of the Chinese Association of Low Carbon Environment and former director of the Global Change Research Center at National Taiwan University.
TRANSLATED BY LIU YI-HSIN
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