Stormwater runoff occurs when liquid from rain and melted snow flows into city drainage systems, rivers, and lakes. Impenetrable surfaces like concrete pavement and asphalt roads create conditions for runoff to flow over their surfaces rather than be absorbed into the ground. For this reason, many municipalities have stormwater management systems to prevent problems like flooding and erosion.

Hilltop Basic Resources in Cincinnati, OH, provides building materials so cities can create structures to mitigate runoff. They share a few urban planning methods for accomplishing this task:

• Pervious Concrete: A porous combination of water, cement, coarse aggregate, and chemical admixtures are combined to create pervious concrete. Unlike impervious concrete, pervious concrete allows water to penetrate the pavement and drain into the soil.  Pervious concrete improves water quality by capturing the initial surface runoff during a rainstorm, which contains the most pollution. It’s recognized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as a best management practice for stormwater and has been used for decades.

• Green Infrastructure: Natural water management elements like trees, plants, and microbes are used in landscaping to capture, clean,  reduce, and reuse stormwater runoff. These green infrastructures are open spaces such as wetlands and forested areas that absorb precipitation. They also serve as parks, recreation areas, and wildlife habitats as well as improve air and water quality.

• Rainwater Catchment Systems: This method captures runoff in concrete cisterns or tanks and stores it for use in irrigation or plumbing systems. It also can be processed by treatment facilities to create drinkable water.

Hilltop Basic Resources offers construction materials for concrete water containment structures and other building projects. Whether you need ready-mix concrete, gravel, or sand, they can deliver it throughout the Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana tri-state area. Call (513) 684-8200 to discuss your stormwater runoff management strategy and visit them online for more information about their locations and products.