Storm Water

The town I live in is looking to do riverfront development. Over the past few years, there has been a lot of development all around us and more and more land is getting covered up with buildings and paving, so storm water runoff is a problem.  It is so much of a problem for that matter that the river that runs by us generally flood more often and higher than it has before.  The reason I know that is because one of my friends lives on the river and he has told me that there have been more floods in his time at that location recently than before.  It is getting to be a big concern for him.

A few weeks ago another friend of mine, who is a supervisor in Upper Merion, sent me a copy of his constituent newsletter with a link to a video about pervious asphalt. This new material is really the same material they use for roads but put together in a different fashion to allow water to pass through into the ground rather than run off.  I watched the video with my jaw on the floor.  There was such a fast re-absorption rate, it was amazing.

The great thing about it is that this method is actually less expensive than using the standard method.  If using this new method, planting more trees, and using other ways to reduce runoff, to me is a win-win.  It is not that I am advocating developing everything in site, but our riverfront development is an important project to help drive up our economic base and the last thing I want to have happen is cause more problems down the river.