In the new home of the Rotteveel family from Boskoop, a pilot project with a circular water system started in September. The system, which collects rainwater for in-house usage and recycles greywater for a second use, saves more than 90% of the drinking water consumption as well as 40% of the wastewater.
Several systems are combined in the home. First, rainwater from the roof is collected in an underground tank in the garden. This rainwater is purified and used as hot and cold water for the shower, bath, sinks, fountains, and garden water. Then the used (rain) water from the bath and shower is collected again, and after treatment in a Hydraloop device, it can be reused for toilet flushing and the washing machine.
Reducing water consumption
With the pilot project, the Rotteveel family wants to inspire and stimulate other homeowners, authorities, builders, and developers to also contribute to the necessary water transition: we have to consume less water, use our drinking water sparingly, and collect rainwater from heavy showers so that it does not all have to be drained through the sewer system and we can prevent flooding.
Another important goal of this project is to assess whether such systems can be applied on a larger scale in the future, for instance at street or district level. The use of this system will be monitored for 10 years. We measure the water quality with water samples and, with water meters, we gain insight into the actual savings and how much rainwater has been used.
Collaboration
The project is a collaboration of several organizations. The municipality of Alphen aan den Rijn, the Province of South-Holland, the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland as well as the suppliers of the systems: Hydraloop, MijnWaterFabriek and HemelWaterTechniek contributed to the realization of the system. In addition, water utility Oasen is involved to provide and obtain knowledge about this type of small-scale water treatment systems.
This article is an English translation of the original, published in "Week in beeld, Informatie van de gemeente Alphen aan de Rijn" on October 11, 2023.