In Brazil, 113,000 cisterns have already been installed to collect rainwater for almost 700,000 people, part of a larger effort to install 1 million.
Laxman Singh has dedicated his life to reviving traditional rainwater
harvesting systems in parched villages in western India. Under Laxman's leadership, villagers have built new reservoirs and irrigated their fields. The results of this work are everywhere. In the village of Laporiya, harvests of wheat, lentils and vegetables have tripled, and the water table has risen by 45 feet.
Janet Jarman
Women tap water from a central well in Laporiya, a
remote village in the drought-prone state of Rajasthan, India. Since 1991, levels in the wells have risen from 60 feet below ground to just 15 feet. The gains have come thanks to the revival of traditional rainwater capture techniques: Villagers have rebuilt collection ponds, repaired masonry storage tanks and created earthen percolation reservoirs that help recharge groundwater. Laporiya has been recognized as the only village in the district that did not require aid in the form of water tankers.
Janet Jarman
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