The Importance of Rainwater Harvesting and Its Usage Possibilities: Antalya Example (Turkey)

The significance and effective use of water, one of the most basic requirements for sustaining vital activities, is gaining importance every day. Population growth and unprogrammed industrialization accelerate the consumption of available water resources. However, drought, as a result of climate change, poses a threat to water resources. Factors such as the exhaustibility of water resources, rapid population growth, unscheduled industrialization and drought increase the tendency towards alternative water resources. Rainwater harvesting is based on the principle of using the rainwater falling into the regions after it is stored. Water collected through rain harvesting can be utilized in many different areas, such as agricultural irrigation, landscape irrigation and domestic use. Among agricultural activities, the idea of water harvesting in greenhouse areas comes to the fore. Due to the gutters on the greenhouse roofs, water can be stored. In Antalya, which has about half of the greenhouses in Turkey, the amount of water in the rain harvest that can be obtained in greenhouses is 224,992,795.8 m(3) per year. Monthly calculations throughout the year showed that the minimum water can be harvested in August (938,447.53 m(3)) and the maximum (54,771,210 m(3)) in December. Therefore, it is thought that some plant water consumption can be met by building sufficient storage in areas close to the greenhouse.