Pervious Concrete Pavement – A Sustainable Alternative

摘要

Pervious concrete pavement offers benefits to transportation and environmentalengineers. The ability of pervious concrete pavement to drain water from the surface reducesdemand on the stormwater management system and decreases or eliminates runoff. Theelimination of runoff is beneficial to the surrounding area by reducing pollution and preventingheated water from entering water sources. The light color and open structure of perviousconcrete pavement also decreases the likeliness of the development of heat island effects whichare often caused by dark surfaces such as parking lots. Pervious concrete pavement hastraditionally been used in warm climates that do not experience freeze-thaw cycling. Thepavement structure determines if water will infiltrate naturally into the subgrade or be movedaway from the pervious concrete pavement area. The ability of pervious concrete pavement torejuvenate the local ground water and support vegetation is beneficial, especially in urbanenvironments. Research is currently on going at the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ONCentre for Pavement and Transportation Technology (CPATT) in partnership with the CementAssociation of Canada (CAC) and industry members throughout Canada. The outcome of thisproject will include a design, construction and maintenance guide for the use of perviousconcrete pavement in freeze-thaw climates, focusing on Canada.This paper outlines many applications for using pervious concrete pavement to achievesustainability. Findings from numerous test sites in Canada are included. The drainage rate ofpervious concrete pavement is high in comparsion to the maximum rainfall rate that isexperienced throughout Canada. Considering this, pervious concrete pavement has manyapplications where it can be implemented to handle runoff or drainage from a larger impervioussurface area. Various applications of pervious concrete pavement and the associated benefits andchallenges are outlined in this paper. Pervious concrete pavement offers many benefits butshould be used in suitable applications. Current test sites within Canada are presented as well asother applications for pervious concrete pavement. Applications can result in increasedsustainability through environmental, societal and economic benefits.