Charcon Provides SUDS Solution for New Park and Ride
An innovative sustainable urban drainage system from Charcon has
helped Wirral Borough Council to minimise the impact of a new 6,000
square metre car park.
The new ‘park and ride’ is part of a £1.26 million package of
measures to help Wirral capitalise on the influx of visitors
expected during the Royal Open Golf Championship at the Royal
Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, including a raft of transport
improvements.
Following the identification of potential flooding issues as a
result of the development, Wirral Borough Council engineers took
the decision to implement an innovative Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SUDS), the
first time this technique has been used for a scheme of this scale
within the Merseyside area.
Traditional drainage practice moves rainwater as rapidly as
possible from the point at which it has fallen to a discharge point
– the local drainage network. However, in this particular area,
investigations showed that it could increase a risk of flooding in
the local area after medium rainfall.
Wirral Borough Council therefore enlisted Charcon’s specialist
expertise to help design a system to minimise this risk.
Following detailed investigations, Charcon and Wirral Council
jointly designed a solution specific to the requirements of the
site. Due to the relatively good permeability of the soil and
restrictions on discharging water into the existing drainage
system, Charcon developed a system which would replicate the
natural infiltration of surface water into the water course.
This required the level of the car park to be elevated to
increase the capacity for controlled drainage, using Aggregate
Industries’ open granular sub-base to delay the speed with which
rainwater enters the watercourse.
Charcon Infilta Block Paving was then selected to surface
the parking areas. With a specially designed nib structure
providing a 5mm space between adjacent blocks, Infilta
Block Paving allows ingress of water through to the storage
system. Available in Red, Brindle, Charcoal and Natural Grey, the
blocks combine the aesthetic appearance, strength and performance
of Charcon’s established block paving ranges with the added
environmental benefits of sustainable drainage.
In addition to reducing flooding risk, Charcon’s solution has
delivered additional benefits including minimal visual impact,
reduced pollution and waste water, improved biological diversity
and consistent soil moisture levels.
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