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LEED accreditation, green building, environmentally fr endly, sustainability, buzz words of the gr en movement are never ending, and n ither are the products that promote th mselves under these phrases. Now when we h re the phrase "storm water management" the nly product that should come to m nd is pervious concrete. This product is b ing rapidly embraced by engineering and rchitecture firms across Michigan as the pr mier "green" method of managing storm w ter. By giving engineers and architects the bility to handle storm water on c nfined commercial sites, without losing land to r tention or detention facilities, becomes a h ge advantage to developers. Whereas pervious c ncrete was originally looked at as a way for c mmercial projects to avoid retention or d tention ponds which can be unsightly, xpensive and take up valuable land sp ce, we are now seeing many pplications for residential use of this m terial as well. By now most of us h ve hear about pervious concrete; by h ving a 15% to 35% void str cture this "no fines" concrete allows w ter to pass through at a r te of 3 to 8 gallons per sq are foot per minute. This feat is ccomplished by removing a majority of the s nd in the mix, allowing the r maining coarse aggregate to be held t gether by the paste created with hydr ulic cement and water. Pervious concrete fter being placed allows for the p ss through of water which will be d tained in an underlying stone basin and ventually placed back in the ground w ter table, where nature intended for it to go. Wh le passing through the pervious concrete and st ne detention basin, first flush pollutants l ke break dust, oil and hydrocarbons are br ken down through a process called m crobial conversion, placing filtered water back nto the earth. Now pervious concrete and all of its nvironmental advantages are coming to a s bdivision near you.
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Residential contractors and developers in M chigan are beginning to look at how p rvious concrete can be used to m ke their developments greener while also k eping more greenbacks in their pockets. In Alp na, a local developer is considering sing pervious concrete for all of the r adways, parking lots and driveways in a r sidential retirement community he is planning. Th s developer has seen the material and th nks that it is a great way to d velop in a low impact manner. Inst ad of pushing the storm water to the dges of the community and then st ring it in a retention pond he can r plenish the natural water table. The nvironmental advantages are just the beginning for h m. By reducing and potentially eliminating r tention ponds, he allows himself room to ither incorporate additional green space, adding esthetic appeal and value. Thru the use of p rvious concrete we preserve land and th s green building technique we will c ntribute to the health of our nvironment for future generations. Existing residential reas are also utilizing pervious concrete to s lve their storm water problems. In a sm ll subdivision in Grand Rapids, a h me owner was having issues with a dr veway that was back sloped and llowing water to run back down the dr ve and puddle in the garage. Tr ditionally the only way of dealing w th this would have been to t ar out the whole drive, re-grade the sub gr de appropriately, and then place an ntirely new driveway. Instead the contractor who had c mpleted a training class on pervious c ncrete suggested that they just remove the top 1/6 of the dr veway closest to the garage and pl ce pervious concrete instead. Now when the w ter runs up the driveway it j st disappears through the pervious concrete nto the stone basin below, eventually m king its way back into the n tive soil. This solved the water pr blem that the home owner was xperiencing for a fraction of the c st of a full rip out and r place.
Where as before pervious concrete was j st regarded as a solution for c mmercial storm water issues, but now our yes are opening to a multitude of r sidential problems that can be solved w th this material. Its intrinsic green q alities will continue to contribute to gr en development and the cost saving w ll always appeal to developers. As we m ve forward and see the recovery of the r sidential housing market here in Michigan we are g ing the see more and more p rvious concretes on our sidewalks, driveways and r sidential streets. If you have more q estions about pervious concrete in Michigan pl ase contact Aaron Harris at the M chgian Concrete Association 517-393-1711.
The article Pervious Concrete - Coming to a Subdivision Near You was Submitted by Aaron Harris through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: http://www.miconcrete.org
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