L.A. Airports Celebrate Eco-Friendly Construction

Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is the recipient of the Excellence in Concrete Award presented annually by the Southern California chapter of the American Concrete Institute in recognition of "excellence in environmental usage of concrete on the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) Crossfield Taxiway Project." As part of the project, a 1,600 space parking lot was constructed to accommodate airline tenants who were being displaced by the new taxiway.

The Airport Development Group's project team, headed by Civil Engineering Associate III Goran Lazarevic, incorporated the use of pervious concrete into construction of the parking lot. Civil Engineer Rosa Brice was the construction manager.

Pervious concrete is a special type of concrete with a very high degree of porosity. This concrete provides an environmentally friendly surface that allows stormwater to flow through it, thereby reducing runoff from the parking lot. The parking lot is the largest pervious concrete project in California.

Use of pervious concrete also helps replenish water tables and aquifers, minimizes standing water, mitigates surface pollutants, reduces the need for separate stormwater retention ponds and allows for the use of smaller capacity storm drains.

Both Lazarevic and Brice accepted the award on behalf of LAWA's Airport Development Group during a ceremony in downtown Los Angeles.

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