Since the university's establishment in 1927, only a few laws and regulations have been implemented towards rainwater harvesting systems. However in 2011, a major bill called House Bill 3391 was enacted, which implemented many provisions to regulate the construction and management of rainwater harvesting systems. This bill includes provisions focused on minimum requirements for construction, process to incorporate rainwater into the public water system and incentives for owners looking to construct rainwater harvesting systems.
One of the major provisions included in this bill states that "a municipality of county is prohibited from denying a building permit solely because the facility will implement rainwater harvesting system", which means that the county cannot negate the construction of a rainwater harvesting system to the University of Houston just because it wants to build a RWH. (8)
The University of Houston is comprised of an abundance of buildings, but not all of these buildings qualify under House Bill 3391 to be built on. According to the Bill 3391, “rainwater harvesting used for potable and non-potable use and landscaping watering is required to be incorporated into design and construction of each new building with a roof measuring at least 50,000 square feet that is located in an area where average rainfall annually is 20 inches”. (8) Since the University of Houston is a part of Harris County, the bill requires that the average rainfall in Harris over the course of the year be at a minimum of 20 inches. Looking at data from Texas Almanac, we developed an informative graph (Fig. 1) depicting the monthly breakdown of rainfall in Harris County. When monthly averages are summed together, we discovered that the annual rainfall average for Harris County is about 53 inches, which is more than enough to meet the requirements of House Bill 3391. (16)
One of the major provisions included in this bill states that "a municipality of county is prohibited from denying a building permit solely because the facility will implement rainwater harvesting system", which means that the county cannot negate the construction of a rainwater harvesting system to the University of Houston just because it wants to build a RWH. (8)
The University of Houston is comprised of an abundance of buildings, but not all of these buildings qualify under House Bill 3391 to be built on. According to the Bill 3391, “rainwater harvesting used for potable and non-potable use and landscaping watering is required to be incorporated into design and construction of each new building with a roof measuring at least 50,000 square feet that is located in an area where average rainfall annually is 20 inches”. (8) Since the University of Houston is a part of Harris County, the bill requires that the average rainfall in Harris over the course of the year be at a minimum of 20 inches. Looking at data from Texas Almanac, we developed an informative graph (Fig. 1) depicting the monthly breakdown of rainfall in Harris County. When monthly averages are summed together, we discovered that the annual rainfall average for Harris County is about 53 inches, which is more than enough to meet the requirements of House Bill 3391. (16)
We discovered that a large number of buildings meet the requirements of a 50,000 sq ft area roof. However, a subsection exists that could potentially prevent the university from building on current structures if any new projects rainwater collection potential exceeds that of the present buildings. It applies only to institutes of higher education:
"Subsection (c-2) applies or the state agency or institution of higher education constructing the building provides the state energy conservation office evidence that the amount of rainwater that will be harvested from one or more existing buildings at the same location is equivalent to the amount of rainwater that could have been harvested from the new building had rainwater harvesting system technology been incorporated into its design and construction”. (17)
The University of Houston currently has two buildings in the midst of construction; these buildings are highlighted in Figure 2 below (14):
"Subsection (c-2) applies or the state agency or institution of higher education constructing the building provides the state energy conservation office evidence that the amount of rainwater that will be harvested from one or more existing buildings at the same location is equivalent to the amount of rainwater that could have been harvested from the new building had rainwater harvesting system technology been incorporated into its design and construction”. (17)
The University of Houston currently has two buildings in the midst of construction; these buildings are highlighted in Figure 2 below (14):
Because the square footage of these current projects are both under the 50,000 limit, the university currently has a wide array of buildings eligible for the incorporation of a rainwater collection system that can harvest more rainwater than the new buildings. We compiled a list of all of the buildings at the University of Houston (See Figures 3 and 4) and found the square footage of each roof, which allowed us to narrow down potential prospects for a rainwater collection system. In the list, building names highlighted in green are projects currently under construction, and possible locations to build a rainwater harvesting systems are highlighted in red.
Finally, we discovered a provision that focuses on the uses of the harvested water:
“If the harvesting system is intended to be connected to public water system for potable use, a written notice is required to the municipality or owner of the public water system. A municipality may not be held accountable for any adverse health conditions caused by consumption of water collected by rainwater harvesting connected to the public water system if the municipality is in compliance with sanitary standards. A person who installs and maintains rainwater harvesting systems that are connected to a public water supply system and are used for potable purposes must be licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners as a master plumber or journeyman plumber and hold an endorsement issued by the board as a water supply protection specialist”. (8)
If the University of Houston decides to connect its harvesting system to the public water system for potable purposes, then it must obtain licensing from the county and the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners. However, this provision will not come into play for our model since our proposed system will not be used for potable purposes. Learn more about the purposes intended for these harvesting system by clicking the link below.
On a side note, House Bill 3391 also promotes the idea of institutions of higher education looking into building RWH system. More importantly though, it looks to give incentives to such institutions: “Property tax relief provided to non-residential building using rainwater harvesting equipment, services or supplies used for rainwater harvesting are exempted from state sales tax”. (8) This provision looks to give institutions a reason to invest in rainwater harvesting systems, which is our overall promotion goal for the University of Houston.
“If the harvesting system is intended to be connected to public water system for potable use, a written notice is required to the municipality or owner of the public water system. A municipality may not be held accountable for any adverse health conditions caused by consumption of water collected by rainwater harvesting connected to the public water system if the municipality is in compliance with sanitary standards. A person who installs and maintains rainwater harvesting systems that are connected to a public water supply system and are used for potable purposes must be licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners as a master plumber or journeyman plumber and hold an endorsement issued by the board as a water supply protection specialist”. (8)
If the University of Houston decides to connect its harvesting system to the public water system for potable purposes, then it must obtain licensing from the county and the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners. However, this provision will not come into play for our model since our proposed system will not be used for potable purposes. Learn more about the purposes intended for these harvesting system by clicking the link below.
On a side note, House Bill 3391 also promotes the idea of institutions of higher education looking into building RWH system. More importantly though, it looks to give incentives to such institutions: “Property tax relief provided to non-residential building using rainwater harvesting equipment, services or supplies used for rainwater harvesting are exempted from state sales tax”. (8) This provision looks to give institutions a reason to invest in rainwater harvesting systems, which is our overall promotion goal for the University of Houston.