Rainwater Harvesting In Residential Building located in Brazilian Unesco World Heritage City

Ensure access to water and sanitation is one of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to promote human health and well-being. Improving water-use efficiency is one key to reducing water stress due to rapid population growth, urbanization and increasing water needs from agriculture, industry, and energy sectors. This phenomenon is observed in less affluent regions and also in major urban centers, such as Olinda, a coastal city located in the northeast region of Brazil, where water supply issues are frequent, even in a city designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This paper present an alternative for better water utilization by promoting the rainwater harvesting for activities that do not require potable water, thus favoring the reduction of potable water resources consumption. The study object is a residencial building located in the Olinda city historic site, where water supply is provided on alternate days according to the local sanitation company. The steps methodology included the collecting monthly readings from the hidrometer, analyzing local rainfall conditions, determining the influential coverage area, assessing the effective consumption of potable water, and evaluating the feasibility of implementing a rainwater harvesting system. As a result, a significant percentage of potable water savings could be identified, and the feasibility of implementing a rainwater harvesting system in the residence was also a paper contribution.