Permeable Resin-Bound Surfacing in Athens, GA

The Technical Standards, the stormwater ordinance and where porous pavement fits

Development in Athens-Clarke follows Chapter 5-4 of the County Code (Stormwater Management) and the Transportation and Public Works Department's Technical Standards, dated December 2023, which adopt the Georgia Stormwater Management Manual and apply the more stringent requirement where documents overlap. The minimum water quality standard is to treat runoff from 1.2 inches of rainfall, with no impervious runoff bypassing treatment, and to cut post-development total suspended solids by 80 percent on an average annual basis.

Porous pavements get their own paragraph. They may be used to reduce impervious site coverage and runoff volume, must use a runoff curve number of at least 61 in hydrologic calculations, and are designed following Bruce K. Ferguson's Porous Pavements. A resin-bound system has to be presented within that framework, and the County's Stormwater Management Program decides how it's credited.

Piedmont clay, the Oconee rivers and what they mean for the base

Athens sits in Georgia's Piedmont, where clay subsoils and weathered rock often drain slowly. A permeable section can still store the water quality volume in its stone reservoir, but the engineer will usually pair it with an underdrain or controlled outlet and size the reservoir from infiltration tests taken at its base. The County standards set a minimum curve number of 61 for porous pavement in runoff calculations, so the design can't assume it absorbs all the rain that falls on it.

Local streams feed the North and Middle Oconee rivers, and the County applies a riparian credit automatically to the quantity portion of the fee for eligible streamside properties. Sloped lots near creeks call for checked or terraced reservoirs, and construction falls under the County's soil erosion and sedimentation control chapter, so plan silt control while the base is open.

Where it fits in Athens

• Student housing and apartments near the University of Georgia: walks, courtyards and parking stalls on sites where impervious area drives the monthly fee.
• Five Points, Normaltown and Boulevard homes: driveways and paths on older lots with mature trees.
• Downtown Athens: restaurant and bar courtyards and patios at grade.
• Churches, schools and offices: low-speed parking paired with conventional drive aisles.
• Creekside sites: projects where reducing runoff volume helps protect stream banks.

Getting it approved in Athens-Clarke, and Resin Rock's role

Plans go to the Stormwater Management Program within Transportation and Public Works, which handles land development review. For a fee credit, a licensed professional engineer evaluates the facility against current County design standards and the owner files an Adjustment Review Request. Credits mainly reduce the quantity and quality portions of the fee. County code also offers a 20 percent credit for facilities designed to infiltrate 1 inch of rain through green infrastructure, which can be added to other credits. Approval and any credit are the County's decisions.

Resin Rock supplies the binder, stone blends, trims and Rock Crete permeable sub-base, with technical data sheets for the engineer. We don't install. We train installers through Georgia installer training and match Athens owners with an approved installer on request, usually within 24 hours.