Permeable pavers are being used in an innovative residential subdivision constructed in the
Jordan Cove Watershed in Waterford, Connecticut. The Jordan Cove
community project is funded in part by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
(CT
DEP). They have received a United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) nonpoint
source grant under the Section 319 National Monitoring Program of the Clean Water Act. A 6-
to 10-year monitoring project is currently being conducted for two separate sections of the new
Glen Brook Green subdivision, as well as a pre-existing residential control watershed. With a
paired watershed approach in mind, one part of the Glen Brook subdivision was developed using a
traditional lot style and typical construction practices, while the other part used a cluster
approach and employed a wide variety of Best Management Practices (BMPs). These practices
include shared pervious driveways and a reduced-width access road, which is also constructed of
permeable pavers (transportation permeable pavers).
Over 20,000 square feet of interlocking concrete pavers were used in the project. The permeable
driveways and roads in this unique subdivision will contribute to the project's water quality
objectives of reducing nitrogen, bacteria and phosphorus export from the site, maintaining the
pre-development peak runoff rate and volume, and maintaining pre-development suspended sediment
loads.1,2,3
The City of Olympia, Washington, replaced 1,500 feet of traditional
pavement with porous concrete on a busy sidewalk in a residential neighborhood near a local
school system. A community-based research class at the Evergreen State College surveyed users
as to their general likes and dislikes about the new pavement.4 They questioned,
on-site, 81 joggers, bikers, walkers and skateboarders between the ages of school student to
senior citizen as to their feelings about the newly installed porous pavement sidewalk. The
majority of users traveled the sidewalk daily, and while most did notice that it differed from
traditional pavements, approximately half of those surveyed liked its appearance and even felt
that the sidewalk was less slippery when wet. Increased tripping risks did not seem to be a
major concern for users, and most felt that if the costs of installation were the same or less
than traditional pavements, they would consider using porous cement for the sidewalks and
driveways of their homes.
1 Photographs and project information from the UNI-GROUP U.S.A.
Jordan Cove Urban Watershed Uni Eco-Stone® Case Study. See
http://www.uni-groupusa.org for more information.
2 Lombardro, L.A., G.L. Grabow, J. Spooner, D.E. Line, D.L. Osmond,
and G.D. Jennings, 2000: Section 319 Nonpoint Source National Monitoring Program Successes
and Recommendations. NCSU Water Quality Group, Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Department, NC State University, Raleigh, NC.
Sketches accessed and modified from
http://www.bae.ncsu.edu/programs/extension/wqg/319/319index_files/Ct-98.1.pdf
DEP). They have received a United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) nonpoint
source grant under the Section 319 National Monitoring Program of the Clean Water Act. A 6-
to 10-year monitoring project is currently being conducted for two separate sections of the new
Glen Brook Green subdivision, as well as a pre-existing residential control watershed. With a
paired watershed approach in mind, one part of the Glen Brook subdivision was developed using a
traditional lot style and typical construction practices, while the other part used a cluster
approach and employed a wide variety of Best Management Practices (BMPs). These practices
include shared pervious driveways and a reduced-width access road, which is also constructed of
permeable pavers (
