Willingness to Invest in Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting

Abstract

Water is increasingly becoming scarce across not only in India but also in World. This paper aims at bringing out the factors responsible for a household's decision to invest in rooftop rainwater harvesting. The paper is based on cross sectional sample of 230 houses from Urban Areas of Hooghly District in West Bengal. The study is conducted in an area which has piped municipal water supply. The study finds that a large number of explanatory variables like income of the household, coping cost incurred by the household positively and significantly affect household's decision to invest in rooftop rainwater harvesting. However, the household demand for water is negatively related to willingness of the household to adopt rooftop rainwater harvesting. Household heads that are educated are more likely to invest in rooftop rainwater harvesting. Houses which are comparatively new or constructed in last five years, as well as households who also undertake gardening are also more likely to invest in rooftop rainwater harvesting as compared to households without the features.