United States
     Environmental Protection
     Agency
        RESEARCH  PROJECT
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
       Water Supply and Water Resources Division
         Urban Watershed Management Branch
Design/Construction of a Permeable Pavement Demonstration Site at the
Edison Environmental Center (EEC)
                                                                   IMPACT STATEMENT

                                                         This project will provide a scientifically defensible
                                                         estimate of the performance of the three permeable
                                                         surfaces:  porous  concrete,  porous  asphalt,  and
                                                         interlocking   concrete   pavers.    The   U.S.
                                                         Environmental  Protection  Agency  (EPA)  can
                                                         provide the results to municipalities enabling them
                                                         to plan sound storm water management strategies.
BACKGROUND:
At present, there is little information on the performance of this stormwater management practice that practitioners can
use to design a stormwater management plan.  There is also little information of temporal changes or maintenance
practices. This project is being conducted to generate reliable data on the stormwater management control. The Water
Supply and Water Resources  Division  of EPA's Office  of Research and Development's (ORD's) National Risk
Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) solicited advice and opinions from each trade  group associated with the
permeable surface installed to assure that the design and construction meet the associations' specifications.

DESCRIPTION:

ORD's NRMRL has funded this research project in support of its Aging Water Infrastructure  (AWI) Research Program.
This project will measure the  water quality parameters for at least ten years to  establish  the performance changes
associated with seasonal patterns and with elapsed time  (facility use).  This  allows  measurements  of changes in
performance with maintenance practices,  and also  allows measurement of temperature  profiles under each surface to
detect heat island patterns. The  project will establish the observational data on ancillary parameters such as the ability to
plow snow, and the use of deicing chemicals.

Parking lot highlights:
    •   The lot covers about one acre and provides parking for employees and visitors.
    •   Driving lanes are paved with conventional asphalt that drains to the porous surfaces.
    •   The lot slopes so water flows across the driving lanes between the porous sections.
    •   Partially buried tanks  receive water drained from lined sections of the permeable parking lanes, allowing
       researchers to measure volume and flow rates and also study stormwater quality.
    •   Monitoring instruments are installed in and beneath the porous  pavement to understand the  movement of
       stormwater through the pavement, underlying layers, and into the native soil.
    •   Six rain garden cells will help reduce stormwater runoff from non-porous sections of the parking lot and the roof
       of the adjacent building.
      National Risk Management Research Laboratory
      Water Supply and Water Resources Division

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This parking lot, which was open for use on October 28, 2009, will not only function as a research site, it will also serve
as a highly used parking lot for Edison Environmental Center staff and visitors. In addition, the lot will serve as a
demonstration site for other federal facilities and will be used as a public outreach tool displaying green stormwater
management.
EPA GOAL: Goal #2 - Clean & Safe Water, Objective 2.1.1-  Water Safe to Drink
ORD MULTI YEAR PLAN: Water Quality (WQ), Long Term Goal - WQ-3 Source Control

RESEARCH PARTNERS:
Contractors: PARS Environmental Services; Compete Technical Solutions with S&E Services
Collaborators: EPA's Region 2 and Office of Administration and Resources Management

EXPECTED OUTCOMES AND IMPACTS

This research project aims to provide sound  methods for  measuring the performance of similar stormwater controls
installed in less controlled environments that can be executed by others.  The project also provides statistically defensible
performance results. Measurements will enable scientists to determine whether permeable surfaces will help cities:
    •   cool more effectively during summer evenings than areas paved with conventional surfaces;
    •   reduce stormwater volume flowing to receiving waters; and
    •   improve water quality by removing solids and other environmental contaminants.
All of the rain falling on the parking lot will infiltrate into the soil with no runoff reducing the environmental footprint of
this EPA facility.

OUTPUTS:

Current and expected outputs consist of reports, presentations, and a peer-reviewed journal article.
RESOURCES:

Aging Water Infrastructure Research Program: http://www.epa.gov/awi/
NRMRL Urban Watershed Management Research: http://www.epa.gov/ednnrmrl/
Demonstration of parking lot's porous concrete: Video (WMV) (3.8 MB)
CONTACTS:

Michael Borst, Principal Investigator - (732) 321-6631 or borst.mike@epa.gov
Thomas O'Connor, Investigator - (732) 321-6723 or oconnor.thomas@epa.gov
Amy Rowe, Investigator - (732) 906-6823 or rowe.amy@epa.gov
Emilie Stander, Investigator - (732) 906-6898 or stander.emilie@epa.gov
Steven Doub, Media Relations - (513) 569-7503 ordoub.steven@epa.gov
Michelle Latham, Communications - (513) 569-7601 or latham.michelle@epa.gov

      National Risk Management Research Laboratory
      Water Supply and Water Resources Division
EPA/600/F-09/038
October 2009

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