Let the water soak in.

In today’s world water is a valuable natural resource.  With certain non-permeable surfaces, such as concrete, asphalt or traditional mortared pavers, water cannot soak into the ground.  These hardscapes cause numerous problems ranging from flooding, the transportation of pollutants and chemical, to unnatural erosion.  However there are ways to combat this problem with Permeable Pavers.  The idea of permeable pavers is that they allow for water to infiltrate the ground through the small voids between the pavers.  Even after allowing water to penetrate the pavers, they are still sturdy enough to allow for vehicle traffic.

Permeable pavers can help with a couple of different LEED points including recycled content of the pavers, materials, regional materials, storm water design and heat island effect. 

Pavers could, for low intensity storms, help reduce water runoff by 80% or even 100% if the storm isn’t to big.  This helps in reducing the area required for detention areas.

photo courtesy green stone pavers visit their web site at : http://www.greenstonepavers.com/catalogs.htm