The Road Less Traveled: Pervious Pavement & Other Green Surfaces for Your Home

Impervious surfaces, or areas that do not allow water to absorb into the ground, blanket a large portion of urban Los Angeles. Most of us only have to look as far as our driveways to find a concrete, asphalt or brick surface that is impervious. While surfaces of this sort are useful in controlling flooding, they are detrimental to groundwater supplies and hazardous to the health of our water bodies. That's because when rain hits an impervious surface, it runs right off, flows into our streets and picks up most everything in its path like oil residue or trash before it flows into storm drains and straight to our creeks, rivers and ocean.

The answer to this problem is simple – change impervious areas to pervious surfaces that allow water to soak into the ground. Although we don't have much control over the types of materials used in the construction of roads, we do have control over our own driveway's surface. The options available to homeowners looking to create a more eco-friendly driveway are as diverse as the communities here in southern California. If you're looking for a home improvement project this spring, consider the road less traveled - installing a green driveway that will improve both your property and our planet.

Note: The description of green surfaces below is only a listing of choices available to homeowners. LA Stormwater has not used or tested any of the products. We are providing this listing only as a compilation of our research and not as an explicit endorsement of these products. If you have experience using the products listed below, please let us know your thoughts and comments.


Pervious Concrete = ‘Green’ Concrete

Pervious concrete is one of the most effective means of converting your driveway into a surface that absorbs water but still allows your driveway to look, well, like a concrete driveway. There are many types of porous concrete that are perfect for the job. It all depends on the style you want. Any style, even bricks, can be created with pervious concrete in a way that helps reduce runoff from your driveway. On the surface, porous pavement may not look any different, but close inspection will reveal small holes or slits that help the water to absorb into the ground. You can get your feet wet by checking out this permeable concrete video demo. For information about pervious pavement in general, here's a little fresh dirt from a homeowner who regrets not using ‘green’ concrete.


A Country Lane in the CityThe easiest and perhaps most common method of creating a green driveway is to create two parallel narrow strips (made of bricks or concrete, for example) for tires and plant native grasses or other plants in between. Think modern country lane in the city! Depending on what you want, your budget and your willingness to do a little work, you can either hire a professional or do it yourself.

If it Ain’t Broke …

Perhaps a porous concrete surface or a modern-styled country road isn't in your plans. Permeable pavers with native grasses planted in between are another great option. Pavers vary in design as well as cost and many have lifetime warranties. For a cost comparison on permeable pavers, check out this great page. Don't want grass on your driveway? Not a problem. Gravel, wood chips or other materials placed in between the concrete squares will also allow water to infiltrate. You must have seen examples around town of eco-friendly driveways or parking lots with pavers and permeable material in between. Pavers actually date all the way back to Roman times, so really this isn't a new concept. Like the old adage says, "If it ain't broke..."

Amass the Grass!

Replacing your driveway has never been so green. Literally. Driveable grasses may be another option you can consider - guaranteed no mud and no watering. Pre-fabricated panels, manufactured in a variety of materials from plastic to concrete, are laid on your driveway. Once the interlocking pieces are in place, native grasses are sown in between. To read about a Do-It-Yourselfer couple in Canada who created a green driveway over a three-day weekend, visit frankejames.com.

Options Galore

There are even more ideas for innovative and inexpensive types of permeable surfaces out there for you. Saying goodbye to puddles (and storm water pollution) never looked so fashionable, and you’ll impress your neighbors with your forward-thinking approach to home improvement. Take a peek at Landscape Online's permeable surfaces page to broaden your horizons. You can also review the Chicago Green Alley Handbook for a helpful overview on the different options for making your home more water sustainable (pg 24-34). For a detailed, technical look at porous pavement, check out LA County's LID Manual (pg 53-57). Also check out the City's Green Streets Manual, which is full of useful information about permeable pavement (pg 8-12).

Still thirsty for more? HowStuffWorks offers an explanation of green pavement.

If you care about protecting our water quality and are looking to do some home retrofits in the near future, installing permeable surfaces around your home may be something to place on your springtime agenda. As with any home improvement project, it’s always a good idea to check with the City of Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety first before moving forward with a major improvement project. We encourage you to call (866) 452-2489 or visit www.ladbs.org for more information.

We're curious to hear what type of experience you've had with any of these materials. Please reply to this post with your comments.

Click here to view all of the articles in Issue 10 of the LA Stormwater newsletter.

*Country Lane photo courtesy of TheChicEgologist.com.

Save Water by Going Native!

Water is a precious resource, especially in Southern California where the annual average of rainfall is much lower than in other parts of the country. At times this can mean water shortages and drastic cut backs as our population is large and our potential to use water is great due to our dry climate.

There are certainly many ways to conserve water usage, but one that is not often talked about is the use of native plants. Not only are plants that are native to our region beautiful, perhaps more importantly they are adaptable and accustomed to our dry climate.

Images of green lawns are typically what come to mind when we think about perfect residential landscapes. However, most of the green grasses that we use for our lawns are not native to Los Angeles, nor are they green. In fact, many of them use a lot of water.

That’s why native plants may be a great option if you are seeking to reduce your water usage, which in turn will help reduce runoff from your lawns. The less water you use in your yard, the less likely it is to run off into our storm drain system. Native plants, unlike regular lawns, use far less water, and are typically able to survive droughts and promote an aesthetic that is beautiful yet sustainable.

One other cool thing about native plants is that there are many types to choose from. Most also live a long time, so your initial investment will surely pay off. In fact, the Theodore Payne Foundation, which promotes the use of native plants throughout Southern California, organizes tours that may help entice you to go native! They hold several inspiring tours in different spots around Los Angeles where you can learn more about the wonders of native plants.

For a listing of the 7th Annual Native Garden Tours that will be held this Saturday and Sunday, please visit: http://www.theodorepayne.org/Tour/.

Get Your Volunteer on for Clean Water!

Upcoming Events for March 2010:

For more info on these events, including time and location, please visit the embedded links or check out our calender.

>Come join the clean-up of Cienga Elementary School on Saturday, March 6. The event is sponsored by Keep America Beautiful Great American Cleanup, the nation's largest community improvement program. The event is part of the group’s annual clean-up from March 1 through May 31, involving an estimated 3 million volunteers and attendees.

>The Surfrider Foundation and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium are also putting their weight behind two events on Saturday, March 6. Surfrider volunteers will be tackling beach garbage in Venice and folks that volunteer for Cabrillo can weed and learn about native plants at their awesome native garden. There is also a cool TreePeople restoration event on Sunday, March 7 in Agora Hills.

>Later, during the second week of March, TreePeople will be hosting a Park Work Day in Beverly Hills on March 11 (if you can’t make it on the 11, chip in on the 18 or 25) and on Saturday the 13 they’ll be putting their muscle behind a mountain restoration gig in the glorious Topanga and Coldwater Canyons. And if you are up for double duty that weekend, join TreePeople for a project in Calabasas.

>Don’t think you can run a marathon? That’s okay, that doesn’t mean you can’t help out during the LA Marathon’s big day, which will happen on March 21. To be a volunteer attend a meeting on March 19 or 20 to bring your eco-skills to the mix.

>TreePeople will be at it again on March 20 in South L.A. to help an Eagle Scout add some green to the community. Heal the Bay will also be at it on the coast, doing a clean-up with volunteers at Dockweiler Beach.

>The Mayor (and the City) is calling on you to chip in on March 20 as well for a Day of Service. The LA Schools Day of Service is a day for Angelenos throughout the City to unite and share a day filled with service projects throughout local schools that will address school and community issues, as well as highlight the school's and community's assets. So learn a bit more about how you can get your hands dirty to make our city a little bit cleaner.

>March 21 (as noted) is marathon day in the sunny city we call Los Angeles. So if you attended one of those meetings, this will be your chance to put yourself to the test. Runners (and the environment) will thank you.

>Also on Sunday March 21, Heal the Bay will be embarking on work in Malibu Creek State Park as well as Santa Monica Mountains. So if marathons aren’t your thing, head to the hills!

>Brentwood residents will have a chance to plant trees with TreePeople on Saturday, March 27. The event will be part of an effort to plant 1 million trees in L.A. That means they need a lot of good folks on board to help out (hint, hint)!

CA Legislature Passes Water Conservation Bill

The state Legislature finished with one piece of a multi-part water package Tuesday when the Assembly approved a bill mandating a statewide drop in per capita water use. The package, which includes an $11.1-billion bond that must go before voters, would nudge California in new directions on water policy while giving something to each of the major factions that have warred over the state's supplies.

The bond sets aside $3 billion for new storage and $2 billion for ecosystem restoration in the deteriorating Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. It would also fund recycling and groundwater cleanup important to Southern California, pay for Salton Sea restoration, and watershed projects on the Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers.

For more information, go to the LA Times article.