Rainfall as a resource
For millennia, people prayed for rain. It nourished crops, supplied drinking water for families, livestock, and wildlife, and even aided transportation along rivers and streams. But as humans shifted to dense urban living, rain turned into a problem we wanted gone, and gone fast. This change from a "hydrophilic" to a "hydrophobic" society happened gradually, driven mainly by urban density. As cities grew, we replaced permeable, crop-covered land with impervious pavement, roofs, and concrete. Our modern buildings and infrastructure also tolerate flooding poorly, so we've engineered ourselves to resist runoff at all costs. Yet rainfall remains essential. The life-sustaining regeneration we once valued it for is still vital, urbanization just made it inconvenient. Traditionally, the fix has been bigger, faster drainage systems that rush stormwater straight into the Gulf of America. Efficient, yes. Sustainable, not really.
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