Visitor Center Parking Lot: Paving the Way to a Cleaner Environment

The Arboretum's parking lot catches and recharges water that ends up in Meadow Lake. This filtration system safeguards the lake's ecosystem (plants, fish, birds, and amphibians) by keeping the water quality as high as possible.

The Arboretum's parking lot features an environmentally progressive design. The lot uses interlocking, permeable paving blocks with gaps at the corners filled with fine gravel. The permeable blocks and gravel act as a filtration system for rainwater and melting snow so that pollutants can be removed or broken down before runoff reaches other water sources.

In summer 2011, Arboretum staff are collecting water samples at 15 spots throughout the grounds, including rain water falling from the sky, water being discharged from our permeable paver parking lot at the Visitor Center, and water from traditional pavement parking lots. We'll measure the amounts of water and the elements contained within the water samples to see if water coming off our Visitor Center parking lot is cleaner than the other samples. Results are expected this fall.

For more information about the design of the Visitor Center parking lot download Main Parking Lot: Paving the Way to a Cleaner Environment. (PDF. Download free Adobe Reader to view.)