One local group is taking an environmentally friendly approach to parking. At first glance, you may not think it looks like a parking lot. Rob Meyers designed the lot at Jefferson City Farm and Gardens to be made out of permeable brick pavers.

"The permeable pavers which are installed here allow the rainwater that occurs to go directly down to a gravel base underneath the brick pavers. And there the gravel can provide a surface for any engine oils or antifreeze to adhere to," said Meyers.

By allowing this rainwater to seep through the porous asphalt, water pollution is also reduced. Dirt and oil runoff travels through various layers giving the oil time to break down before entering the watershed. Permeable pavers can also provide some advantages in winter conditions.

Myers believes this parking lot will avoid the problems that asphalt lots cause. 

"I've been around streams in Columbia where there's a parking lot nearby, and the parking lot drains right into that stream," said Meyers.

The permeable pavers are designed so that when connected together, there still remains a gap large enough to catch the rain. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources helped fund the parking lot by giving a $188,000 grant. They hope the grant will persuade others to adopt this new approach.

"The permeable pavement is something we'd like to see in mid-Missouri for sure but all across Missouri as well," stated Georganne Bowman of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

While the cost of the parking lot is higher, future maintenance is lower, making it cheaper in the long run.

"The Morton Arboretum did a fifty-year cost-analysis and they found that doing this type of parking lot, is roughly about half of doing a conventional asphalt parking lot over a 50 year period. If you assume repaving asphalt lots," explained Meyers.

While the pavers might be more expensive than asphalt upfront, it's a sacrifice Meyers will take to help the environment.