Abstract
The efficiency of family farmers irrigation is conditioned by several factors such as good quality water supply. In this context, it was to evaluate the salinity and physical, chemical, and bacteriological characteristics of water harvested from roofs for irrigation of crops by family farmers in Brazil. The experiment was conducted at the Federal Institute Goiano, in Rio Verde, Goiás, Brazil. The rainwater collected on the roofs was sent through vertical and horizontal conductors to the storage tank, which has a capacity of 5000 L. The risk of salinity, pH, turbidity, conductivity, color, total dissolved solids and thermotolerant coliforms during 13 precipitation events was analyzed. Rainwater was classified as water with no salinity problem (EC < 0.7). The variation of the electrical conductivity (EC) and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) were similar during the collection period, with mean values of 0.05 dS m-1 and 29.72 mg L-1 for EC and TDS, respectively. The pH of the rainwater presented little variation, presenting a mean of 7.37. The mean value of the color of rainwater was 11.45 PtCo L-1, while the turbidity averaged 4.89 UT. During the period of rainwater harvesting, it was observed absence of thermotolerant coliforms in all samples. It is concluded that rainwater does not present restrictions on the risk of salinity and that all physical-chemical and bacteriological parameters analyzed are within the limits allowed by Resolution 357/2005 of CONAMA, indicating the propensity of this type of water for irrigation.
Highlights
Irrigated agriculture has contributed to the economic growth of Brazil
The objective of the present work was to evaluate the salinity and physical, chemical, and bacteriological characteristics of water harvested from roofs for irrigation of crops by family farmers in Brazil
Rainwater was harvested from roofs of a building of this institute, which had an area of 60 m2, and slope of 30%, using aluminum gutters connected to PVC pipes with diameter of 150 mm
Summary
Irrigated agriculture has contributed to the economic growth of Brazil. Irrigation is essential for the agribusiness but to the subsistence of family farmers (Silva, 2013). Water is the main input for agriculture; the rational use of water for irrigation increases the productivity of crops (Vasconcelo et al, 2009). The use of rainwater for non-potable purposes is an alternative for small properties of family farmers that depend on or seek an implementation of an irrigation system for crops (Thielke, 2014). Alternative sources of water supply, such as rainwater harvesting, are becoming increasingly important, for a number of different purposes including irrigation, drinking, and domestic use; the roof of a building or house is the obvious first choice for the catchment (TWDB, 2005; Meera & Ahammed, 2006; Schets et al, 2010; Daoud et al, 2011)
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