The area surrounding the old Astrodome was a sea of hot Texas asphalt and the designers of the new NRG Stadium chose Grasspave2 to help with the "Greening of Reliant [NRG] Park." The 7 acres of Grasspave2, the largest engineered grass-porous paving system in the world, is part of the 30 acres of green, park setting, at the site. The cooler site can provide the area with nearly three more months of use - formerly avoided for festivals and conventions because of extremely high surface temperatures of Texas asphalt. The Grasspave2 porous paving system, is considered a Best Management Practice by the EPA, for stormwater management. This Grasspave2 lot, with a 9 inch road base, has the ability to store and clean 60,000 cu. ft. of storm water, therefore preventing down stream flooding and non-point source pollution. Grasspave2 actually cleans the water of toxic hydrocarbon drips and the pure water is recharged into the ground water supply. Normal concrete or asphalt parking lots produce automobile drippings, containing the toxic hydrocarbons, and the water flows into rivers and streams polluting the water. Terra cotta Gravelpave2 was placed for truck access and emergency vehicle access close to the Astrodome as part of the “greening” of NRG Park. Other environmental benefits of this Grasspave2 parking lot include: • Providing 6340 adults with oxygen for one year • 509 tons of air-conditioning effect emitted from the grass • 120,745 lbs. of recycled plastic used in the production of the Grasspave2 • Reduced "Urban Heat Island Effect," • Providing air and water to the root-zone of trees. Trees can thrive in this parking lot, where it is difficult to provide enough air and water to a tree's root-zone in a normal concrete or asphalt lot. Tailgaters coming to the NFL's Houston Texans games will have a much more pleasant and aesthetically pleasing surface on which to enjoy pre-game food and refreshments. The parking lot will also be used for other events such as festivals, concerts, and conventions. Grasspave2 provides %100-grass coverage with engineered strength to support extremely heavy loads. Any street legal vehicle can park on Grasspave2 - nearly twice the strength (5,721 psi) of 2 inches of concrete (3,000 psi). Fun NRG Stadium Facts: • Home of the Houston Texans Football Team • The NFL's first retractable roof stadium • Total seating capacity: 69,500 • Total Club Seating: 7,700 • 166 total Private Suites at 16 and 22 people each • First row of suites will be the closest to the field in the NFL • 2 Mega Suites at 150 people each.

The largest engineered grass porous system is located at NRG Stadium

The cool parking lot can serve as event and festival grounds for the National Rodeo and other events. The Texas sun on the Astrodome’s old asphalt lot, was too intense for this use prior to the installation of Grasspave2.

The old Astrodome complex had less than one acre of green space.

The cross section for this plan varied slightly, from the normal Grasspave2 Technical Specifications, since the system would be dealing with a tremendous amount of water. The Grasspave2 system is also a bioswale for much of the hard surface pavement.

A shot of the main entrance of the “State of the Art” Facility.