Green is in ... and it's here to stay.

Environmentalism, taking care of the environment, is nothing new. Some consider the first milestone in the nation's environmental movement to be the original Earth Day on April 22, 1970. Others would say the origins can be traced to the works of naturalists such as Thoreau, Emerson, and Muir, in the mid-1800's. (1)

No matter what the historical perspective is, the reality is environmental stewardship is an increasingly important factor in business, society, and life in general. This is not to suggest that environmentalism ever went out of vogue; it's just that there has historically been a wide chasm in people's views about the environment. It's highly unlikely that anyone would admit to being against protecting the natural world around us. The problem comes in differences of opinion about what to do and just how far to go. As a result, citizens, business, government, and environmental activists often have been at odds about what to do...or not to do.

A Balanced Approach
The current convention is to find solutions that, on one hand, minimize the impact we (as agencies, contractors, and others responsible for transportation construction) are having on the environment. At the same time, it involves meeting environmental needs without putting business and government at odds or in the untenable situation of trying to meet unrealistic expectations.

The concept is known as sustainability (or sustainable development). In its purest form, sustainability is simply balancing the needs of the environment, business, and society.

So what?
What does this mean to contractors and agencies? Some people are quick to dismiss the whole topic because environmental issues tend to be controversial, poltically-charged, and the focal point of extremists.

But the reality is that sustainability is not just a short-term trend, but a way of life for many agencies and a growing number of contractors and others in industry.

This is why ACPA works closely with the U.S. Enviornmental Protection Agency, the Federal

Highway Administration, and other stakeholders involved with the "Green Highways" initiative. Green Highways is a refreshingly creative, regional pilot program that is aimed at environmental compliance through positive incentives and recognition of those who demonstrate effective environmental practices in transportation-construction.

It's also why ACPA is working to advance a better understanding of environmental issues among all stakeholders. One of the ways is through a new outreach and education campaign known as "Pavements for Life." The campaign is based on focus-group research and is aimed at educating the public, including public officials, about a wide range of factors associated with pavement types.

Pavements for Life includes basic information about the environmental features and benefits of concrete pavements.

White is Green
One of the centerpins of the Pavements for Life campaign is environmental awareness. Quite simply, concrete pavement is the material of choice for agencies and other stakeholders that require solutions that meet sustainable development goals.

There are many reasons why concrete pavement is the right choice for the environment. Among them are concrete's durability, natural reflectance, recyclability, and the role it plays in reducing the nation's dependency on oil imports.

CONCRETE PAVEMENT PROGRESS is urging you to spend time on the website, Pavements4life.com, and then to share the information with others in your organization, as well as friends, family, neighbors, and others who might be interested in solutions to some of the current and future challenges that lie ahead.

Sharing this information is an important step in understanding and addressing environmental issues, while still meeting the needs of business and society. One way or another, this will be the lasting impression we leave for generations to come.
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(Source: "HISTORY OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT" by Jeremiah Hall, www.mtmultipleuse.org.)

In spite of a recent downward trend in retail and wholesale fuel pricing, oil imports continue to spiral higher. As many agencies have discovered, this has a profound, even shocking impact on asphalt pavement materials prices.

But there are other hidden costs associated with rising oil prices ... and though they may not be as evident as rising prices of PG58 and fuel, they will still have a negative impact on agency budgets.

Fuel Use in Construction
One such factor is the energy cost associated with placing asphalt pavements. As a general rule, placing asphalt pavements requires about 2.90 gallons of diesel fuel per ton, in contrast to 0.50 gallons per ton for concrete pavement.

Based on a conservative assumption that equivalent asphalt and concrete pavements have the same thickness, and that a typical asphalt density is 140 pounds per cubic yard, the amount of diesel fuel required to place one lane-mile of 10 in.-thick asphalt pavement is 10,718 gallons. The amount of diesel fuel consumed during the placement of one lane-mile of 10 in.-thick concrete pavement is 1,916 gallons, or less than one-fifth the amount of fuel required to place the similar asphalt pavement.

The Federal Highway Administration estimates roughly 500,000,000 tons of asphalt are placed each year. Using the above equations, if agencies had used concrete pavement instead, they would have saved more than 1.2 billion gallons of diesel fuel.

Fuel Consumption by Road, Highway Users
Pavement type also can impact the amount of fuel used by vehicles traveling on highways and roadways.

For example, trucks and other heavy vehicles cause greater deflection on flexible (asphalt) pavements than they cause on rigid (concrete) pavements. In turn, this deflection absorbs part of the vehicle's energy that would otherwise be available to propel the vehicle. Thus, more fuel (up to 6.9%) is required to move heavy vehicles on asphalt pavements. Click here to learn more in "For the Long Haul," (QD009P), one of the brochures in ACPA's popular Quick & Direct literature series.

Process Efficiency
Another key consideration is the fundamental way in which the two pavement types are placed.

Concrete roads are typically built in a continuous, single-layer, two-lane-wide using a method called slipform paving. The result is a very efficient operation, requiring a modest amount of energy for construction vehicles.

In sharp contrast, asphalt pavements require much more energy, both because they are placed in multiple passes, but also because they require fossil fuels to heat the materials. Typically, asphalt materials are heated to 325°F at the production plant. The hot asphalt is then delivered to the construction site, where asphalt pavers and compaction rollers require even more energy to place the road in 12-foot wide multiple layers (often 3 or more for highways). The result is an inefficient operation that requires at least 5-1/2 times more energy than it requires to place a concrete road.

For more information on reduced energy consumption in construction, click here to read "Conserving Fuel in the Road," (QD023P) the latest in the Quick & Direct literature series.

Reduced Vehicle Emissions
Reduced demand for fuel in construction projects translates to enormous environmental benefits, including reduced emissions from construction vehicles.

Using the previous example for asphalt and concrete, the savings in diesel fuel would translate to approximately 13.3 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) that would not be emitted into the atmosphere by road construction vehicles and equipment each year.

To put this into perspective, the average passenger car emits about 5 tons of CO2 annually, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The CO2 savings realized by constructing concrete pavements instead of the 500,000,000 tons of asphalt placed annually would be equivalent to taking 2.7 million cars off the road.

For more information, contact Leif Wathne at 202-638-2272.

Urban noise is a serious issue for many agencies, as well as highway and roadway users. Tire/pavement noise is seen as a common annoyance, but the truth is it that solutions are available that resolve this problem.

A result of research led by ACPA with the International Grooving & Grinding Association and Purdue University, one of the quietest concrete pavement textures recorded in North America opened to traffic on Wednesday.

After grinding, noise testing equipment recorded sound level just under 100 dBA. These results from the 1,200-ft section of Northbound I-355 in Chicago confirm in the field the desired results achieved in laboratory and test

facility conditions. This represented a major milestone in researching and implementing quiet concrete pavement surfaces.

Another section of the quietest concrete pavement also has met performance expectations in the field. This time, the texture recorded under 100 dBA on a test section of I-94W in Minnesota that is open to traffic and was diamond-ground in just one pass. The texture has performed at this level in the laboratory and on test sections using two passes with the diamond grinder.

This 500-ft section of roadway is connected to a section of conventionally-ground concrete pavement, and "you can definitely hear the difference between the two surfaces when you drive over it," said Larry Scofield, P.E., ACPA's Director of Environmental Technology.

It is widely expected both sections will be watched closely by contactors and agencies wanting to strike a balance between surface characteristics and the other positive features of concrete pavements.

In time, this new technology will join other standard concrete textures known to provide low-noise qualities, such as longitudinal tining, turf-drag, and conventional diamond grinding. However, this new texture should prove to be the quietest.

For more information, contact Larry Scofield at 480-775-0908.

ACPA offers a number of documents on tire/pavement noise mitigation. Click here to download "Entering the Quiet Zone," or visit ACPA's bookstore at www.pavement.com/bookstore for more information.

The latest in ACPA's free R&T UPDATE series covers joint slap effect, a key factor in tire/pavement noise.

"The Joint Slap Effect" (R&T Update 8.04) documents ACPA's and Purdue University's testing of joint slap effect, which occurs when a vehicle travels over a faulted pavement, a pavement with wide joints, or a pavement where joints have been overbanded or are missing sealant.

The four-page, glossy document includes:

• descriptions of the equipment and research methods used;
• illustrations and detailed graphs; and
• preliminary field validation testing results.

Click here to download a copy of this and others in the free R&T UPDATE series.

For more information on tire/pavement noise testing, contact Larry Scofield at 480-775-0908.

Five Key Design Elements for Pervious Pavements

Pervious concrete pavements hold great promise for communities looking to manage stormwater. This pervious surface replaces traditional pavement, allowing stormwater to infiltrate directly, permitting a naturally occurring form of water treatment.

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Five basic design features should be incorporated into all pervious concrete pavements:

1. Pretreatment: In pervious concrete pavement designs, the pavement itself acts as pretreatment to the stone reservoir below. Because the surface serves this purpose, periodic maintenance of the surface is an important factor in optimal performance.

2. Treatment: The stone reservoir directly below the pavement surface should be sized to accommodate storm flows. Typically, pervious concrete pavement is sized to treat a small event, such as a water quality storm (i.e., the storm that will be treated for pollutant removal), which can range from 0.5 to 1.5 inches. As in infiltration trenches, water can be stored only in the void spaces of the stone reservoir.

3. Conveyance: Water is conveyed to the stone reservoir through the surface of the pavement and infiltrates into the ground through the bottom of this stone reservoir. A geosynthetic liner should be placed below the stone reservoir to prevent preferential flow paths and to maintain a flat bottom. Designs also may incorporate some method to convey larger volumes of stormwater runoff to the storm drain system, such as the inclusion of drain pipes below the pavement, diverting stormwater flow to supplementary catchment areas for potential reuse, or other innovative devices.

4. Maintenance Agreements: A maintenance agreement with specific guidance for routine operations, such as vacuuming or pressure-washing the surface, is a key nonstructural component to avoiding major rehabilitation in the long-term.

5. Landscaping: For pervious concrete pavement, the most important landscaping feature is a fully stabilized upland drainage. Reducing sediment loads entering the pavement can help prevent clogging.

For more information on the design, limitations, and maintenance of pervious concrete pavements, see ACPA's popular publication, Stormwater Management with Pervious Concrete (IS334P). This and other literature is available at www.pavement.com/bookstore. Alternatively, call 1-800-868-6733 or fax orders to 847-966-9666. ACPA members, be sure to visit the "members only" area of the website for discounted rates.

For more information on pervious pavements, contact Scott Haislip, ACPA's Director of Streets & Roads, at 219-922-8104.

ACPA encourages agencies, consultants, and other roadbuilders to join the Association's 44th Annual Meeting—Mission: Possible for technology transfer on some of the newest technologies in roadbuilding.

The Annual Meeting will feature Committee Forums and Tech Day, popular favorite events for presentations of top experts from throughout the transportation-construction community.

Presenters this year include officials from the Federal Highway Administration, state agencies, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, contractors, researchers, and members of academia, speaking on topics including contractor and owner perspectives; alternate bidding; advances in surface characteristics; and more.

Session topics this year will feature technologies that can advance new possibilities on many fronts, including concrete pavement technology, transportation funding, and organizational effectiveness in a dynamic marketplace.

The forums are secheduled for Thursday, November 29, and Tech Day is scheduled for Friday, November 30, the final day of ACPA's 44th Annual Meeting. For more information about Tech Day, contact Mike Ayers at 217-621-3438.

The meeting this year will be at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, Wednesday, November 28 to Friday, November 30.

ACPA is offering all government officials complimentary registration. Click here to download an agenda and registration form. For more information, contact Maryann Beckman-Berman at 847-966-2272.

Want to learn more about concrete's role in sustainable practices for transportation construction?

The 2008 Concrete Technology Forum will

include presentations covering recent developments, changing technologies, continuing research, and other solutions linking concrete and sustainable development in construction. Forum sessions are aimed at public works officials, contractors, engineers, researchers, material suppliers, and other concrete industry professionals.

ACPA is one of the organizational partners participating in the third annual forum, to be held May 20 to 22 in Denver, Colo. The primary sponsor of the event is the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association. Click here to register online. Click here for more information on the event.

Research Board to Conduct Pavement-Related Workshops ... A number of specialized workshops at the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting will have a pavement focus. Click here for a full lineup of workshops. Click here for more information on TRB's Annual Meeting, scheduled for January 13 to 17 in Washington, D.C.