The Use of Pervious Pavements to Save Potable Water in Buildings: A Case Study in Universities in Brazil

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the use of pervious pavements as an alternative to save potable water in university buildings. A case study was conducted in six university buildings of the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC) in Florianópolis, Brazil. The water consumption of each building was obtained through analysis of water bills and downscaled to daily consumption based on average estimates of the weekly and weekend consumption. Then, based on the water end-use profiles and the rainfall data of the city, a stormwater harvesting system was modelled. The system consists of a pervious pavement parking lot connected to an underground stormwater tank and an upper tank. The stormwater is then provided by gravity towards end-uses such as toilets, cleaning, and gardens. As a main result, potable water savings potentials of 31.39 to 75.14% were obtained, depending on the building and scenario evaluated. In conclusion, pervious pavement is a good alternative for a continuously growing impervious urban context, aligning a broad water dissipation approach and enabling the use of stormwater in buildings.