Vampires and mummies, witches and wolf men. You know what else is scary: when a 10,000-gallon rainwater system starts emitting an odor so foul it’s enough to raise the dead. Reflecting on such thoughts this fine Halloween morning, I was curious, what are the EPA’s regulations on rainwater systems?

It turns out that the EPA has no single stance on rainwater harvesting. Instead, the EPA encourages municipalities to establish their own system of codes and regulations. The result is that rainwater harvesting guidelines vary from county to county and city to city.

For example, Tucson, Arizona recently became the first city in the country to require rainwater harvesting for landscaping use. Starting on June 1st, 2010, 50% of a commercial property’s irrigation water must be supplied by rainwater. This is a huge development in the water conservation world, but it begs the question: who will regulate these systems?

Two important aspects of rainwater harvesting are identifying the acceptable uses of rainwater and defining the treatment standards. If it hasn’t been done already, your city or county needs to define how rainwater can or cannot be used for irrigation, car washes, toilet flushing, heating and cooling, equipment washing and more.

While some municipalities have minimal requirements for the treatment of rainwater—such as pre-screening the rainwater capture system—other municipalities have taken a more conservative approach, requiring filtration and disinfection processes that are comparable to gray water recycling.

Either way, there’s one important thing to consider: the responsibility of maintaining the rainwater system’s health and efficiency falls on the system’s owner. If not taken care of properly, rainwater systems can emit that hair-raising smell mentioned above or worse—algae will grow.

Brac’s new rainwater harvesting systems ensure that all components are air and water tight, eliminating the risk of groundwater infiltration. Since the tanks are buried underground, the water is stored in a dark, cool condition, reducing the chances of contamination.

But here’s the real advantage: unlike most rainwater systems on the market, the Brac System is equipped with a disinfection process that effectively removes all microbiological contamination. That means you can sleep peacefully throughout the year, even on Halloween.