Permeable Pavement

Overview

Permeable pavement allows for the absorption and infiltration of rainwater and snow melt onsite. There are several different names that refer to types of permeable pavement, including pervious or porous concrete, porous asphalt and interlocking permeable pavers.

Additional Information

  • Pervious P​avement

    Pervious concrete pavement is a unique and effective means to address important environmental issues and support green, sustainable growth.

  • Pervious Concrete

    Brochure that provides an overview of pervious concrete and how it can be used for stormwater management. It contains good diagrams of pervious pavements. Published by the American Concrete Pavement Association.


Benefits of Permeable Pavement

Reduces Stormwater Runoff

  • Permeable pavement reduces surface runoff volumes and rates by allowing stormwater to infiltrate underlying soils.
  • By reducing runoff volumes and rates, permeable pavement can lower water treatment costs and reduce flooding and erosion.

Increases Groundwater Recharge

  • By allowing rainfall to infiltrate, permeable pavement can help increase groundwater recharge.

Reduces Salt Use

  • Permeable pavement has been demonstrated to substantially delay the formation of a frost layer in winter climates, which mitigates the need for salt use. By reducing the need for salt, communities are able to save money and reduce pollution in local waterways and groundwater sources.

Reduces Energy Use

  • The use of permeable pavements also has the potential to reduce energy use by lowering surrounding air temperatures, which in turn reduces demand on cooling systems within buildings.

Improves Air Quality

  • Because permeable pavement captures rainfall onsite, communities can reduce the amount of water treatment needed, in turn reducing air pollution from power plants.
  • By reducing the urban heat island effect, permeable pavement decreases ground level ozone formation, which directly impacts air quality.

Reduces Atmospheric CO2

  • Permeable pavement captures rainfall onsite, enabling communities to reduce the amount of water treatment needed, in turn reducing CO2 emissions from power plants.
  • Permeable pavement also has the potential of reducing lifecycle CO2 emissions compared to asphalt and cement, which produce high lifecycle CO2 emissions.

Reduces Urban Heat Island

  • Permeable pavement absorbs less heat than conventional pavement, which helps to reduce the surrounding air temperature and decrease the amount of energy needed for cooling.

Improves Community Livability

  • Some types of permeable pavement reduce local noise pollution by increasing street porosity levels.

Cultivates Public Education Opportunities

  • Managing future economic and environmental constraints will require full community participation and partnership. Green infrastructure provides an opportunity to develop community awareness and understanding around the importance of sustainable water resource management.
  • The installation of permeable pavement can provide an opportunity to further educate the public about the benefits of green infrastructure.

Milton Middle School Porous Parking Lot

The new Milton middle school was built the summer of 2009. A portion of the parking lot is made with pervious or porous concrete. Porous concrete allows rain water to soak into the underlying soils. Pavement made with porous concrete do not pond water like regular pavements. The volume of stormwater runoff is also decreased, which is better for water quality.

A porous concrete mixture contains little or no sand, creating a substantial void content. This creates a system of highly permeable, interconnected voids that drain quickly.

Milton Middle School porous concrete parking lot. The lighter color parking lot is porous, the darker color is traditional blacktop, which is not porous. The school is located in Cabell County, WV and was constructed in the summer of 2009
Milton Middle School porous concrete parking lot. The lighter color parking lot is porous, the darker color is traditional blacktop, which is not porous. The school is located in Cabell County, WV and was constructed in the summer of 2009
Water will soak into the subbase and underlying soils of the porous concrete rather than runoff into the stream.
Water will soak into the subbase and underlying soils of the porous concrete rather than runoff into the stream.
Porous concrete parking lot. The surface of the aggregate is more coarse, and is ADA compliant. The sub-base of the porous pavement is approximately 14 inches thick.
Porous concrete parking lot. The surface of the aggregate is more coarse, and is ADA compliant. The sub-base of the porous pavement is approximately 14 inches thick.
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