SHAKOPEE, MN — A bus transit station in Shakopee, MN, was surfaced with nearly 14,000 sq. ft. of Willow Creek Aqua-Loc interlocking permeable pavers this summer to protect the environment and minimize the size of the detention pond required to collect runoff from the facility.

The $4 million transit station is a joint project of Scott County and the cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee. It’s being used to showcase green building practices and products. Aqua-Loc permeable pavers cover the entire area used for bus parking at the Shakopee transit station.

“We wanted to try to mitigate the environmental impact of a 503-space parking lot on a piece of property that formerly was home to some old-growth oaks,” says Michael Leek, community development director.

Aqua-Loc is an interlocking concrete paver system that permits stormwater to drain through aggregate-filled voids between the pavers into subsurface detention areas, rather than run off into storm sewers or waterways. From there, the water is directed through a series of natural filtration processes before gradually exiting the system.

The Aqua-Loc system works in much the same way as a septic drainfield. By creating subsurface detaining and filtration areas, the need for costly, space-wasting detention ponds is dramatically reduced or even eliminated.

The Aqua-Loc system is an acceptable “Best Management Practice” that meets stormwater management and pollutant discharge requirements of the Clean Water Act.
 
“This installation demonstrates that the Willow Creek Aqua-Loc permeable paving system is a viable alternative to traditional pavements to reduce and clean up stormwater runoff in large-scale commercial applications,” says Burt Plett, Willow Creek product manager. “We expect to see increased interest in Aqua-Loc as municipalities begin to require better management of runoff from developed areas and locations near lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands.”

The Aqua-Loc pavers were installed at the Shakopee transit station site in less than a week using mechanical installation equipment. The transit station opened in July 2007.