What's the most eco-friendly alternative to a garden patio?

Decking, concrete slabs and limestone all come with environmental problems - so what's the best option?
Leo blog : hempcrete best option for patio
Alternatives include a modern 'eco' material such as Hempcrete. Photograph: hemp.com

Our patio is made of ageing concrete slabs which need replacing. We would like to use materials that are more eco-friendly, allow water to drain freely, are attractive and not expensive. We can lay it ourselves to keep the cost down. The patio doors are our only access from the back of the house so it also needs to be non-slip. With that in mind, we definitely don't want decking as we've had it before and it was a no-go area after rain. Do you have any suggestions?

Mae, by email

The gardening makeover TV shows of the 1990s have a lot to answer for, not least the craze for decking. One can only wonder how many trees were felled in the name of creating the "outdoor living room", as gardens with decking (and the ubiquitous patio heater) came to be known. Thankfully, this trend appears to have slowed, but people lucky enough to have some outdoor space still understandably desire an area that is solid, level and water-free. In other words, not a lawn.

Concrete patio slabs are still, perhaps, the cheapest route to take. However, concrete is far from being environmentally benign - quite the opposite, in fact. Other options include bricks, stone coins or slabs made of materials such as limestone. The latter has been tarnished somewhat by reports of less-than-savoury conditions at the mines in India where so much of this popular garden surfacing material is obtained.

And what about outdated "crazy paving"? It might seem unfashionable now, but wasn't it a good example of cost-effective recycling? Or maybe you've used a modern "eco" material in your garden, such as Hempcrete?

This column is an experiment in crowd-sourcing a reader's question, so please let us know your views and experiences below (as opposed to emailing them) and I will join in with some of my own thoughts and reactions as the debate progresses. I will also be inviting various interested parties to join the debate too.

Please send your own environment question to ask.leo.and.lucy@guardian.co.uk.
Or, alternatively, message me on Twitter @LeoHickman