LETTER: Learn more about winter salt
“It’s just salt. How bad can it be?”
You know what it does to our vehicles and infrastructure. But did you know that it also threatens the fish and other critters that live in our creeks, and even affects our drinking water?
This winter, our road crews have been busy keeping roads clear of ice and snow. This means applying some sort of deicer, usually salt in the form of sodium chloride. While this is necessary to keep us safe, the use of too much salt can cause harm. All that salt dissolves in the snowmelt and eventually seeps into our groundwater where it can persist for years, or makes its way to the nearest waterbody where it can lead to toxic chloride levels for aquatic life. It can end up in our tap water as well, since most water treatment plants do not filter out chloride.
In 2022, the Washington County Watershed Alliance (WCWA) joined the Izaak Walton League’s Salt Watch program to monitor chloride levels at various points along our local creeks. Unfortunately, none of the sites we tested scored in the “excellent” range, less than half were in the “good” range, and the rest of the sites either scored only “fair” or even “toxic to aquatic life.” Studies have shown that we are using more deicers on our roads and,correspondingly, that our waterways are getting saltier.
So what can be done?
Cost-effective alternatives to salt have not been developed, so the focus has to be on how it is applied. When clearing roads and parking lots, snowplow drivers should take care to use only as much salt as is needed and at the times when it will work best. We can all do our part by not over-salting our sidewalks and driveways. A mug’s worth of salt is enough to clear a 20-foot driveway. Homeowners can also sweep up excess salt and use it again.
Join us from Monday to Jan. 31 for Winter Salt Week 2025, when the Stroud Water Research Center and others will be offering webinars all week at https://wintersaltweek.org/ and WCWA will be posting daily to Facebook. You can also sign up for your own free Salt Watch test kit from the Izaak Walton League at (https://www.iwla.org/water/stream-monitoring/salt-watch) to see how your favorite creek is faring.
Kathleen Martincic
Fredericktown
Kathleen Martincic is the secretary of the Washington County Watershed Alliance and a member of the Izaak Walton League.