Peak Performance
Permeable Pavement A Hole-y Responsible Choice
By Maria Harding
As populated areas expand, their roads, parking lots, and residential pavement take up more and more space. Rain runoff from these paved areas carries petroleum-based contaminants and other toxic chemicals. Traditionally designed pavement will direct runoff to gutters, gullies, and then sewer networks to eventually empty directly into natural water reservoirs such as lakes and rivers. Runoff poisons our bodies of water and can lead to dangerous flooding and erosion. Permeable pavement is gaining attention as a partial solution to reduce the damage done to lakes and streams and the surrounding areas. As a homeowner, you can be part of the solution by replacing traditional impervious concrete with permeable pavement on your driveway, sidewalks, or garden patio. Permeable pavement can include a variety of paving techniques, including pavers, plastic grids, and permeable poured pavement. What they have in common is that they are porous, allowing storm water to filter into the earth below, replenishing natural underground aquifers. When a large volume of water comes quickly, it is stored in reservoirs beneath the pavement, allowing the water to soak into the ground gradually. As water filters through the pavers, through the soil sediment, and through ground roots, many pollutants are filtered out or broken down by bacteria before the water returns to an aquifer source, our primary natural source for drinking water. These aquifers have become severely depleted by the expansion of cities and impervious pavement.
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April 2021
Many municipalities already require that newly-constructed parking lots have green features like permeable pavement. Dense urban areas without nearby lakes and streams are using permeable pavement to reduce reliance on sewer systems. Pedestrian areas such as outdoor shopping centers and college campuses are using permeable pavement as a way to avoid puddles and dangerous slippery spots. If trees grow near paved areas, using permeable pavement can allow them to grow to their full potential and to be more safely rooted. Permeable pavement allows for air and water to reach the rooting zone more effectively than impervious surfaces. Trees, in turn, contribute to urban canopies, soaking up stormwater and air pollution, providing cooling shade, beautifying neighborhoods, and helping to slow traffic. Individual pavers, permeable asphalt, permeable concrete, and plastic grids are all possible paving materials. Individual pavers look like traditional cobbled surfaces, but the stones themselves are more porous and the material between individual stones allows
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