Green fee funding to survey decentralized rainwater catchment systems

Fund a comprehensive survey of privately owned rainwater catchment systems in Hawai’i County, where tens of thousands of residents lack all access to county water/sewer lines and depend on rainwater harvesting and catchment systems for their primary source of household water for drinking, bathing, and cooking. Little is known about the condition of these systems, the water quality, maintenance practices, and emergency readiness. On-site sampling could be conducted alongside targeted outreach focused on water collection, storage, system maintenance, treatment, and water testing. The project would inform the collective understanding of household water vulnerabilities, assess household water security, and establish a reliable information resource to strengthen community resilience, emergency preparedness, and disaster recovery planning.