ASTM Committee C09 on Concrete and Concrete Aggregates will hold a planning meeting for proposed new standards activity on pervious concrete on Dec. 4 at the C09 meeting in Atlanta, Ga. The committee is especially seeking researchers who have been experimenting with different types of tests for pervious concrete, as well as specifying engineers, concrete technologists and contractors.
 
“Many concrete industry experts consider pervious concrete to be the next big thing in the marketplace,” says Karthik Obla, senior director of research and materials engineering, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association. Although pervious concrete has been available since the 1970s, primarily in Florida, Obla attributes newfound interest in the material to the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent recognition of pervious concrete as a best management practice for storm water management.
 
In addition, an increasing focus on sustainability and the green movement has also generated interest in pervious concrete. For example, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings, now recognizes pervious concrete and offers points for using for storm water management in a building project.
 
Obla says that proposed new standards to be considered will be used to qualify pervious concrete mixtures and to facilitate product acceptance testing of pervious concrete in projects. Possible standards to be developed include permeability and density tests, as well as standards for making pervious concrete cylinders for strength.
 
For further technical information, contact Karthik Obla, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Silver Spring, Md. (phone: 210/485-1163; kobla@nrmca.org). Committee C09 meets Dec. 4, during the December Committee Week in Atlanta, Ga. For membership or meeting information, contact James Olshefsky, manager, Technical Committee Operations, ASTM International (phone: 610/832-9714; jolshefs@astm.org).

Release #7470