The Top Eco-Friendly Materials to Repave Your Driveway

Driveways are a low-maintenance part of your property, but they need some attention every so often. Repaving touches up cracks and weathering, which makes it an ideal renovation project. It becomes more of a challenge when you want your home to align with your sustainable lifestyle, but not if you learn about the top eco-friendly materials to repave your driveway.

There are many options at your disposal to extend the lifespan of your driveway without contributing to pollution. You won’t need to worry about frequent reapplication, and it will improve your home’s curb appeal.

1. Crushed Concrete

Concrete isn’t a naturally occurring material, but many homeowners rely on it for their driveways. It adds to water runoff that drains nutrients from your yard and creates carbon dioxide during production. Take advantage of leftover concrete at demolition sites by crushing and reusing it.

Crushed concrete includes material from sidewalks, building foundations and pavements that doesn’t serve a purpose anymore. It creates a driveway identical to traditional concrete, but the small holes allow water filtration so runoff doesn’t strip nutrients from the surrounding environment.

2. Natural Stone Pavers

Driveways can get a bit more character and benefit from a touch of creativity with natural stone pavers. Unlike cement versions that use interlocking edges to create driveways, stone pavers don’t require production which adds to atmospheric CO2. Instead, you’d use stone from quarries and allow some space between each paver.

This is one of the most eco-friendly materials because water runs between the pavers, and it’s all-natural. Find stones with different colors or veining to elevate your curb appeal.

3. Sealcoating for Asphalt

You might have an asphalt driveway that came with your house, although it’s not sustainable. Instead of paying for an expensive, unsustainable replacement material, look into an eco-friendly seal coat to make it last longer without adding to environmental pollution.

Traditional seal coats contain chemicals that seep into local ecosystems, but modern sealants also offer sustainable blends. A professional team can match you with a product designed to meet your priorities and prevent your driveway materials from ending up in a landfill.

4. Porous Concrete

Porous concrete is another option for homeowners who want a traditional driveway appearance without the carbon footprint. Permeable concrete prevents water runoff and requires less material to fill your driveway’s surface area. It cuts a few corners regarding production-related pollution and helps your neighborhood wildlife thrive.

Anyone living under strict homeowners association (HOA) guidelines can use porous concrete to abide by curb appeal rules without paying for an unsustainable driveway.

5. Sandstone Bricks

Another way to personalize your property is by building a sandstone brick driveway. Sandstone is a naturally occurring material. Weather events cement sand into grainy layers, resulting in a stone-like substance. Experts cut it out and hone it into bricks.

Each brick is durable, porous and easily customizable. Use the natural, earthy tones and textures to accentuate Southwestern-style architecture or hardscaping. Your sandstone driveway will hold up just as well as traditional brick or even concrete.

6. Perpetual Pavement

Get the best of both asphalt and concrete without the intense pollution created by using just one or the other. Perpetual pavement uses a mix of both and layers them with recycled materials for added durability. Depending on which team you hire, you could also request pulverized concrete as one of the under-layers. It comes from unused concrete wasting away at demolition sites and gives it a new purpose in your driveway.

Even though this kind of driveway material isn’t all-natural, it still prevents homeowners from funding more pollution. You’d reuse whatever concrete you could in the pavement layers and avoid additional concrete production when it’s not needed.

7. Porous Asphalt

Water runoff is the longest-lasting form of driveway pollution, so don’t overlook materials like porous asphalt. It allows rainwater to seep directly into the ground beneath your driveway, which would normally suffer from a lack of moisture. The natural water cycle can continue safely and at a much faster rate than traditional asphalt allows.

Standard asphalt has nearly 3% void space for water runoff, but its porous alternative has 16%. You’ll help the environment five times more with a single purchase, making porous asphalt one of the top eco-friendly materials to repave your driveway.

8. Crushed Beach Shells

Beach lovers might find crushed shell driveways an interesting concrete alternative. Teams harvest the shells without damaging shorelines, so you won’t take away anything the beach doesn’t need. After production cements the seashells into a durable mixture, it creates another kind of porous driveway.

Sometimes the shells maintain their shape and color, but you can also grind them into small pieces that don’t visually stand out. As your driveway ages, the seashells break down into nutrients to benefit surrounding plant life. They’re a big win for homeowners, especially those who dream about spending their free time by the ocean.

9. Hempcrete Bricks

The construction industry made a recent breakthrough with the creation of hempcrete bricks. They’re lighter to transport, so a gas-fueled shipment can carry more than traditional versions. Hemp also absorbs atmospheric carbon dioxide even after brick formation. Your driveway could clear CO2 from your property and support the hemp construction industry which is providing green alternatives to building materials.

A lime-based binder maintains the hempcrete brick shape even after years of weathering. Anyone interested in all-natural driveway materials should see if hempcrete fits within their repaving budget.

10. Local Gravel

Transform your driveway with local gravel. If it comes from your city or state, your money won’t fund international shipping transportation that burns fossil fuels. It also goes directly back into your local economy, which keeps small businesses open that may have sustainable standards as well.

You can repave a driveway with local gravel if you get enough crushed stone. An industry expert can help you determine how much material you’ll need to top whatever kind of driveway you already have.

Repave Your Driveway Sustainably

These are a few of the top eco-friendly materials you can use to repave your driveway. You’ll find simple solutions to upgrade your property, like investing in sustainable materials or resealing your existing driveway. See which options fit your budget and the curb appeal you want for your home.