Designing Stormwater Management Systems for Maximum Performance

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Doug Buch is the Founder of PaveDrain, LLC, a Wisconsin-based company offering sustainable stormwater solutions to prevent flooding and allow underground stormwater infiltration. A former farm boy who graduated from the University of Iowa in 1992 and landed in technical sales in the construction industry, Doug pivoted to focus on the precast concrete and masonry industry, including erosion control and stormwater management. He started PaveDrain, LLC, in August of 2009, manufacturing over six million square feet in 30 different block facilities across the US and Canada. Doug’s patented PaveDrain System, a Permeable Articulating Concrete Block (P-ACB) designed with open joints for a high infiltration rate, has earned accolades, including emerging as the winner of the China BlueTech award for market readiness in 2016.

In this episode…

As the world grapples with the effects of climate change and the need to protect water quality, managing stormwater effectively has become more crucial than ever. How can communities and developers better handle storing and monitoring stormwater runoff? In order to protect groundwater and surface water ecology, engineers are being pushed to design new solutions.

Ponds have been effectively used in the past to manage stormwater. However, maintenance, escalating land values, environmental impact, and public safety have raised doubts about their use. Construction industry veteran Doug Buch advocates permeable systems that prevent flooding by allowing stormwater to infiltrate the ground while creating micro-ecosystems that thrive in the open-graded aggregate beneath these permeable systems. To improve the typical storm hydrograph while reducing stormwater infrastructure costs, he invented PaveDrain. This system incorporates a patented arch design in the middle of an articulating concrete block to create an internal storage chamber that can be filled with stormwater runoff.

In this episode of Get the Intel, Chad Gill sits down with Doug Buch, Founder of PaveDrain, LLC, to discuss the intricacies of eco-friendly and functional stormwater management systems. Doug shares his transition from technical sales to inventing the award-winning PaveDrain System and the drawbacks of ponds in stormwater management. He provides insights on replenishing aquifers, the factors mitigating permeable drainage solutions, and the challenges of the concrete industry.