Field Investigation of Reduction in Infiltration Capacity in a Permeable Pavement System Due To Clogging

Permeable paving can be used as an alternative to conventional impervious hard surfaces, such as roads, carparks, footpaths and pedestrian areas and this results in many stormwater management and environmental benefits. However, there is a general perception thatpermeable pavements tend to clog quickly and result in high maintenance and replacement costs. This study investigated a permeable interlocking concrete pavement (PICP) system that has been in service for over eight years in Australia. The broad aims of this study were to quantify the reduction in infiltration capacity that occurred in the pavement over time due to clogging. The study clearly demonstrated that the infiltration rate of permeable pavements decreases over time with the results showing a decrease in infiltration capacity of between 63.3% and 100%. However, while pavement clogging clearly resulted in reduced permeability over time, the overall infiltration performance of the PICP system was still satisfactory after eight year’s continuous service