Rainwater harvesting (RWH) represents a potential measure to reduce potable water demand and contribute to stormwater management in urban areas, yet its implementation in Sweden remains limited and largely experimental. This thesis investigates key barriers, drivers and decision factors associated with RWH adoption through literature review and five semi-structured interviews with practitioners representing engineering, property management and supplier perspectives. The results show that lack of standardized methods, insufficient regulatory clarity, economic uncertainty and low market maturity are major constraints. Legislative requirements for stormwater detention currently form the strongest implementation driver, whereas low water tariffs and uncertainty regarding technical performance and design limit wider uptake. To address part of this knowledge gap, a visual decision-support tool, Tyréns Recirculation tool (renamed as TRICS), was improved on and developed to enable simplified early-stage evaluation of RWH feasibility and water saving potential.The tool was developed and increased in its viability to support stakeholders by increasing awareness, enhancing comparability between options and reducing entry barriers during the early planning phase. While the tool currently focuses on potable water substitution, future development should integrate flood risk reduction and lifecycle environmental impacts. The study concludes that RWH can play a meaningful role in sustainable and climate-adapted urban development in Sweden, but requires clearer guidance, standardized routines, economic incentives and decision-support to transition from isolated pilot projects to mainstream practice.
Belal Hajjar (Thu,) studied this question.