Salt & Sand Use in the Winter

Winter is Here! We have gotten a few winter storms now and experienced some icy conditions. With that, out comes the salt and sand on pavement to prevent slips and falls. Salt is tried and true way to melt ice and sand adds traction during the really cold conditions. These are great ways to improve safety on roads, sidewalks, driveways, and parking lots, but they do come at a cost . . . to the environment. Sand adds excess sediment to our waters that can smother habitat for aquatic organisms. Salt is a chemical that is toxic to aquatic life at high concentrations. Salt stays in the water virtually forever and can only be removed by reverse osmosis. While we do not discourage the use of salt and sand, we promote the conservative use as to not be harmful to our waterways.

Friendly reminders on salt and sand use:

• Sand provides traction, does not melt snow and ice
• Mechanical removal snow is the best way to avoid icy build-ups (salt NOT effective with 3 inches of snow accumulation)
• Do not apply salt/sand mix. Use salt and salt separately as necessary, depending on condition
• Salt needs TIME to work (at 15F, one pound of salt needs 60 mins to melt 6 lbs of ice) 
• Apply sand in extreme cold when salt is ineffective.
• Salt (Sodium Chloride) is only effective at or above 15F
• Store salt and sand in a covered container indoors. 
• When applying salt, go for the pattern below:  

*General rule of thumb for salt use: 1 pound of salt fits into a 12 oz coffee mug and is enough to cover 60-70 feet of sidewalk or 20 feet of driveway. You can always add more salt if needed*
For more info, visit https://www.wisaltwise.com/. 
Have a safe and happy winter!

It's starting to look like WINTER!

We finally got a good layer of snow on the ground and cold air coming through this week. For kids that may mean fun times outside building snowmen and sledding. For adults, that may mean slippery roads and shoveling. If you are the one shoveling and de-icing the sidewalks and driveway around your property, here are some friendly reminders:

• Salt (Sodium Chloride) is only effective at pavement temperatures 15 degrees F or above. Salting sidewalks at lower temperatures will NOT melt the ice.
• Sand is an abrasive; it DOES NOT melt snow and ice. However, it will provide traction on icy walkways
• If you use a 50/50 salt/sand mix, you're generally either half right or half wrong. Using a salt/sand mix leads to over application of both materials. 
• Always remove snow after it has fallen! This is the best way to avoid icy build-ups and avoid relying on ill-effective de-icers for sidewalk safety (de-icers not effective with 3 inches of snow accumulation).

And don't forget to enjoy the snow once the shoveling is done! Be in tuned with your inner child and go sledding/tubing or build a snowman!

Road salt contaminating our waters

There was a recent article discussing the long-lasting effect of road salt on our water bodies ("Rivers in wintry cities remain salty year-round"). A University of Minnesota study indicates that some lakes can double in salinity in 50 years! Yikes!

Reminder tips on ways to reduce salt and still maintain safe pavements:
1) Clear the area of as much snow and ice as possible. Clearing snow is best done right after snowfall as compacted from walking/driving is very difficult to remove.
2) Pay attention to the products you are using. There are a variety of salts other than sodium chloride (NaCl) such as magnesium chloride (MgCl2). MgCl2 also has the added bonus of not being palatable to deer. There are many other deicing options (cheese brine, anyone?).
3) Pre-wetting salt can immediately begin to lower the melting point of water. Applying liquid salt can also reduce the amount of salt that bounces off and scatters away.
4) Sodium Chloride is not effective at temperatures below 15 degrees F. There wouldn't really be any benefit to salting at extremely low temperatures.
5) Never use more than 4 lbs/1000 square ft
6) Sweep up any excess salt for reuse
7) Do not apply salt with sand. Sand should be used for traction at lower temperatures when salt won't deice.
8) More good info from the MN Pollution Control Agency: here

It only takes 1 teaspoon to pollute 5 gallons of water!

Grit and Pipes

I like to hear about communities moving forward and trying new technologies.  More specialized technology is available in many fields of interest.  A newsletter of WERF (Water Environment Research Foundation www.werg.org) came recently and highlights some new technologies.  One item listed was on predicting the remaining economic life of wastewater pipes.  We know the city streets need repairs at time and even that our cars won't last forever.  The miles of pipes within a municipality are another set of materials that has a limited life span. 

Over the bridge in Duluth, more water pipes have broken including near the Radisson Hotel and lead to people have to relocate to another hotel.  What could happen if our wastewater pipes broke?  Some pipes do have some cracks and tree roots are forever trying to do what roots do and spread out.  Some roots find their way into pipes.  What comes to a Wastewater Treatment Plant inevitably includes grit from within the land surrounding the pipes.  The removal of grit is one part of the treatment process at the Treatment Plant.  As for stormwater pipes debris can come from the pipes themselves and what enters the storm drains.  Unlike the pipes coming to the treatment plant that remove the grit, the contents from most of the stormwater pipes go untreated into a river or stream. Any organic matter coming through the drain and entering a stream can reduce the oxygen available to the life in the stream.  At this time of year a pulse of salt (road salt) will likely be entering the drains and travel out to the rivers altering the water quality.  The sand on the road can also enter and travel through the pipes.  Simple sand in a rocky bottom stream is not good for the aquatic life depending on the rocky bottom stream.  The distance the stormwater travels in the pipes and the mixing with contents of other pipes can add a loaded discharge to a stream.  We need to help keep the water as clean as possible so that the rivers aren't polluted from a sediment load.

I'll also use this section to add a verse that about 70 of us (mostly 5th graders) sang at the Mariner Mall last Friday at the Water Fair.   I have since tweaked it a bit.   It goes to the melody Row, Row, Row Your Boat.

I love Lakes and Streams
Their health depends on us
Let's all help to keep them clean
For years and years to come.

The pipes are part of the plan to keep water off the street.  We need to be part of the plan to limit what goes in the drains.  The City of Superior also has an Illicit Discharge Hotline.  Please call it if you ever notice something irregular coming out of a stormwater pipe or see a spill or something going into a pipe. The number is 715-394-2761.    We also have a form at www.ci.superior.wi.us and search for illicit discharge.

-Written by Wendy Grethen

Winter road conditions

Good morning Superior!  It warmed up a little bit today....not that you'd normally call 10 degrees warm, but after the last few days, it feels like a heat wave.  There's a lot more snow on the ground today, which can lead to some dangerous walking and driving conditions.  Remember, when it's really cold outside, NaCl does not melt snow and ice on the roads.  For more information on salt's impacts on the environment, see our past blog post about winter salt use here. 
For road conditions in Wisconsin and Minnesota, check out:

Wisconsin 511

Minnesota 511


Please drive safely and remember to clear your sidewalks so you can walk safely too!

-Written by Jillian Schubert Edwards