Water Resources Program Home > Rainwater Collection Home > Rainwater Collection Information Sources

Rainwater Collection Information Sources

Articles, Reports

• AIA Seattle - Rooftop Rainwater Storage Position
• Collection, Storing, and Treating Rainwater for Domestic Indoor Use (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality 1-07)
• Plumbing Engineer: Rainwater Collection and the Plumbing Codes (3-07)
• Rainwater as a Resource (TreePeople 2007)
• Rooftops to Rivers: Green Strategies for Controlling Stormwater and Combined Sewer Overflows (NRDC 6-06)
• Texas Manual on Rainwater Collection (Texas Water Development Board 2005)
• Georgia Rainwater Harvesting Guidelines 4/09

City/State Websites:

• Department of Ecology’s Saving Puget Sound
• Department of Ecology’s Water Quality Program
• Department of Ecology’s Water Resources Program
• Portland, Oregon Office of Sustainable Development
• Puget Sound Partnership
• Texas Water Development Board

Economics (Payback Period Calculations)

• King County Stormwater Fees
• RCW 36.89.080 – Stormwater Fee Discounts for Cisterns (County)
• RCW 35.92.020 – Stormwater Fee Discounts for Cisterns (city or town)
• Seattle Public Utilities Drainage (Stormwater) Fees
• Seattle Public Utilities Water Rates
• Spokane and Surrounding Area Water Rates
• Tacoma Public Utilities Water Rates

Green Building / Water Conservation

• Built Green
• US Green Building Council (LEED)
• WaterSense (US EPA)

Laws, Codes and Ordinances

• Examples of Rainwater Harvesting and Utilization Around the World (United Nations Environmental Programme)
• Colorado Gray Water Reuse and Rainwater Collection Descriptions
• Oregon Revised Statute 537.141 (h) that Exempts Rainwater Collection from Permitting
• Santa Fe County, New Mexico Ordinance that Mandates Rainwater Collection
• Tucson, Arizona Ordinance that Mandates Rainwater Collection (Starting June 1, 2010)

Washington

• RCW 36.89.080 – Stormwater Fee Discounts for Cisterns (County)
• RCW 35.92.020 – Stormwater Fee Discounts for Cisterns (city or town)
• Washington State Building Code Council

Washington’s History of Unsuccessful Legislation on Rainwater Collection:

2001-2002 Biennium		2003-2004 Biennium		2005-2006 Biennium		2007-2008 Biennium
HB 2815		HB 1376  HB 2653  SB 5575		HB 1735  SB 5113		HB 1423  HB 1424  HB 2584

Plumbing

• King County Rainwater Collection and Connection to Plumbing Fixtures Policy
• Oregon’s Rainwater Plumbing Code (Appendix M)
• Plumbing Engineer: Rainwater Collection and the Plumbing Codes (3-07)

Stormwater Management

• Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Stormwater Management in Washington

Seattle

• Mayor Nickels' Restore Our Water Strategy
• Seattle Public Utilities Drainage (Stormwater) Fees
• Seattle Natural Drainage Systems Overview

Sources

• American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association
• Global Development Resource Center
• Harvest H2O
• International Rainwater Catchment Systems Association
• Low Impact Development Center

Contact

Kurt Unger
Department of Ecology WR-HQ
Phone: 360-407-7262
E-mail: kung461@ecy.wa.gov