Rainwater harvesting is not a new idea, but it is one that Texas residents might want to consider more seriously in light of the devastating drought of recent years. Although both officials in Henderson and Kaufman Counties viewed the recent heavy rain and the cooling of temperatures reason enough to relax burn bans and water restrictions, drought and heat will return to plague Cedar Creek Lake residents. This might be a good time to think ahead about how water can be stored for use in residents' yards and even homes when drought conditions intensify again. Rainwater harvesting systems capture and store rainwater in tanks from the roofs of homes, which are usually constructed of flat metal like tin, through the use of connecting gutters, pipes and filters in the most common scenario, according to information from sources such as www.texascooppower.com. Systems range from simple, smaller systems that can be constructed at minimal cost to more complex ones with pumps, pressure tanks, filtration systems and chlorination features that will amount to about $10,000 for a single-family home. The systems can be developed for nonpotable or potable purposes. The benefits of rainwater harvesting is that the water is free after the initial investment and any other collection and treatment costs,the water tastes better because it is not "hard" and does not contain sodium, the systems help reduce flow and therefore flooding, rainwater is better for plants and it can make water available during droughts. The drawbacks are the initial expense, maintenance expenses, and rainfall is still unpredictable so it cannot be viewed as a sole, long-term solution for providing water for a residence or business. Individuals who are interested in the concept of rainwater harvesting to do research before making a capital investment on a system, which is more expensive than obtaining water from a municipal source. The Texas Water Development Board published "The Texas Manual on Rainwater Harvesting" in 2005, and it is available for reading online. Additionally, the Texas Legislature has endorsed the concept of rainwater harvesting, and the 79th Texas Legislature passed legislation establishing the Rainwater Harvesting Evaluation Committee to make recommendations and setup standards for water use. Another law passed by the 78th Texas Legislature prohibits homeowners' associations from banning rainwater harvesting systems, but allows the group to establish rules about screening the tanks from public view. There are a variety of rainwater harvesting systems, and the storage tanks can be installed above or below ground. The amount of water that can be collected through a rainwater harvesting system will vary, depending on the size of the roof and the amount of rainfall in a region, according to www.texascooppower.com. A 2,000-square-foot roof in Austin could expect to collect about 34,000 gallons of rainwater in a year, as opposed to 9,000 gallons for a similar size roof in El Paso, according to the website. The Texas Water Development Board estimates that 38 billion gallons of water could be saved annually if 10 percent of Texas roofs were used for rainwater harvesting. Visit http://rainwaterharvesting.tamu.edu for information. For information about rainwater harvesting system manufacturing companies research websites for Green Builders and visit HarvestH2O.com