Factors Influencing Stormwater Mitigation in Permeable Pavement

Abstract

Permeable pavement (PP) is used worldwide to mitigate surface runoff in urban areas. Various studies have examined the factors governing the hydrologic performance of PP. However, relatively little is known about the relative importance of these governing factors and the long-term hydrologic performance of PP. This study applied numerical models—calibrated and validated using existing experimental results—to simulate hundreds of event-based and two long-term rainfall scenarios for two designs of PP. Based on the event-based simulation results, rainfall intensity, rainfall volume, thickness of the storage layer and the hydraulic conductivity of the subgrade were identified as the most influential factors in PP runoff reduction. Over the long term, PP performed significantly better in a relatively drier climate (e.g., New York), reducing nearly 90% of runoff volume compared to 70% in a relatively wetter climate (e.g., Hong Kong). The two designs of PP examined performed differently, and the difference was more apparent in the relatively wetter climate. This study generated insights that will help the design and implementation of PP to mitigate stormwater worldwide.