Surrey snow-clearing crews are ready with a 17,000-tonne mountain of salt - Surrey Now-Leader

An online Plow Tracker and live-streaming traffic cameras are among tools and equipment used in Surrey to help residents prepare for winter driving. 

When snow falls, residents can check surrey.ca/snow to see which roads have been plowed and also track the city's 77-unit fleet of snow-clearing, de-icing trucks, backhoes and tractors.

City crews appear ready for winter at Surrey Works Yard, off 148 Street, where a floor-to-ceiling mountain of road salt (17,000 tonnes of it) is stored in a shed, along with road-brining solution.

All that salt might be needed if meteorologists are correct with forecasts of a colder, wetter winter in Metro Vancouver.

"You could boil a lot of pasta water with that pile of salt," joked Yonatan Yohannes, Surrey's director of engineering operations, a job he'll have for a second winter.

Ensuring 4,200 kilometres of Surrey roads are safe and passable this winter "is a top priority for the City of Surrey,” Mayor Brenda Locke said during a Dec. 5 news conference.

"We all have a role to play in helping keep our community safe this winter," Locke added. "Please do your part to clear snow and ice from sidewalks outside your home and prepare your vehicle for winter driving.”  

The city works yard is also home to Surrey's traffic camera network and road/weather information system, used for snow-removal efforts.

Surrey uses a three-level route priority system, first focused on arterial roads, major collector roads, bus routes and hilly areas.

Some of Surrey's major routes, including highways 10, 15 and 17, are of provincial snow-clearing concern for crews of Mainroad Contracting, Yohannes noted.

"We are in constant communications with those contractors to make sure all roads are taken care of, because at the end of the day it's our residents who drive those areas, those streets," he said.

Details about Surrey's Winter Snow & Ice Control Operations are posted on surrey.ca/snow. Residents can report a snow or ice problem by calling 604-591-4152, or call 604-591-4370 to report un-shovelled properties in Surrey.

Those who don't clear snow off sidewalks may be fined under City of Surrey’s Highway and Traffic Bylaw at rates of $80 per day (businesses) and $55 per day (residential).

Speaking of money, the Surrey engineering department’s 2024 winter maintenance budget is $4.61 million, $2.74 of which has been spent since January, according to a Snow and Ice Operations report to city council in November. "If seasonal temperatures remain favourable for the balance of the winter season, the Engineering Department will likely be within the allocated budget for 2024," the report notes.

Road salt use during Chicago winters has dropped with climate change, but city remains mindful of usage - CBS Chicago

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The City of Chicago goes to great lengths to keep its roads safe and clear during the winter—but how it is done has changed with the changing weather.

Records show that the city's salt usage has dropped over the years. Last year, the city used less salt than at any point in the last 10 years.

Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation crews prepare for winter 11 months of the year.

"In Chicago weather, you never know what's going to happen," said Department of Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Cole Stallard.

Stallard has seen more than 20 Chicago winters on the job. That means a firsthand look at how the winters have changed.

"We're here," Stallard said. "We're seeing change happening. We're seeing weather changing."

With a changing climate, experts say extreme weather changes are to be expected moving forward.

The amount of salt the city has used over the years tells the same changing story. In the winter of 2020-2021, the city used a total of 322,000 tons of salt, while during winter 2023-2024, only 119,500 tons were used.

Meanwhile, while salt use has dropped, being mindful about usage is still top-of-mind in Chicago and across Illinois. Too much road salt in waterways can contaminate drinking water, kill or endanger wildlife, increase soil erosion, and damage property, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning echoes the call for less salt—or being smarter about use, while the Salt Smart Collaborative offers tips and resources for everyone on how to salt responsibly.

"We are mindful of that," said Stallard. "We'll on what we call the air—the radio—and say, 'Make sure you adjust your spread.'"

CBS News Chicago also got a close look at one of the alternatives being used on our roads right now-beet juice.

"We actually make it ourselves," said Stallard.

Beet juice is not a replacement for salt—it is primarily used only at the beginning and end of winter. But Stallard said it is making a difference.

"You don't want to step in it," said Stallard. "You don't want to bring it into your car, because it doesn't smell the greatest." 

The trucks that spread beet juice focus on bridges, overpasses, and DuSable Lake Shore Drive.

Chicago has more than 400,000 tons of salt on hand right now.

Some 'eco-friendly' de-icers are as harmful as road salt, so what else is there? - The Weather Network

The concept of less damaging, “eco-friendly” de-icers is welcomed as a step in the right direction, but new data has shown that at least some of them actually tend to be worse than the road salt they were intended to replace.

A group of biologists from Queen’s University examined the effects of salt levels in freshwater habitats from de-icer runoffs, comparing them to some of the more eco-friendly labelled solutions such as beet juice, according to a news release. Only minimal effects on the communities were uncovered, including bacterial and zooplankton at high road salt concentrations, but researchers discovered more significant alterations with the more modern concoctions.

DON'T MISS: Is road salt hurting salmon? UBC and volunteers are investigating

More details on the impacts are included in a recent study published in the journal, Water.

The main reason the alternative de-icers such as sugar beet juice aren't as advertised is because of the sodium chloride they contain, according to Shelley Arnott, a professor and researcher at Queen's University.

"These de-icers are really just road salt with some additives. I think the problem is that some of those additives can actually be more harmful than the salt," said Arnott, in a recent interview with The Weather Network.

Two de-icers examined by researchers

The Queen's University researchers tested two types of alternative de-icers, both of which contain sodium chloride as the major component. However, one of them also has a beet juice additive and the other contains magnesium and calcium chloride, as well.

"What we found was that the product with the beet juice additive was actually way more toxic to zooplankton. Zooplankton are kind of an intermediate level of the food web, so they're really important in transferring energy from the algae, [which] are the primary producers. So, it transfers that algae up to higher trophic levels, like fish," said Arnott.

She said zooplankton are thought of as "really critical" links in the ecosystems, so if something is affecting them negatively, then it's most likely impacting the entire food web chain.

Meanwhile, Arnott noted that the beet juice brine still caused a negative impact on the zooplankton with a much smaller amount of it when compared to the road salt with sodium chloride, and the alternative de-icer with the sodium, magnesium and calcium chloride.

"Being affected at lower concentrations (referring to chloride concentrations) means that it doesn’t take as much to cause mortality or reduce reproduction," said Arnott.

To conduct the tests, researchers isolated the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from the "little ponds that we made," allowing them to see all of the bacteria living in the water, according to Virginia Walker, Arnott's colleague and fellow Queen's University professor.

"What we found was that the bacteria that need oxygen to survive were gone, and those bacteria that cause bad smells and everything that don't need oxygen to survive, they're the ones that were left," said Walker, in a recent interview with The Weather Network.

Problems with beet juice as a de-icer

One reason why road salt alternatives with beet juice additives are used is they tend to stick to the road a "bit better" and you don't have to apply it as often, Arnott said.

The juice from sugar beets lowers the melting point of ice and snow, helping to clear your driveway. It’s also used to melt ice and snow on municipal roads in some areas.

"The idea is that you would reduce the amount of salt that you're putting into the environment," said Arnott.

The problem, however, lies in its toxicity, which is worse than road salt, Arnott added.

"Beets have a high amount of potassium, and potassium chloride is really toxic to aquatic organisms," said Arnott.

"There are all these sugars associated with the beet juice. Those sugars fuel bacteria, and then we see this huge drop in oxygen. Of course, oxygen is essential for aquatic organisms, and if you don't have enough oxygen, it's going to change the food web."

Walker noted that of the two de-icers, the variation with the magnesium and calcium chloride had less of an impact than the other in their studies.

"That would be one that might be explored, the magnesium chloride and calcium chloride. But that still doesn't get away from the fact that you're adding salts to the environment."

New Brunswick wetland may hold key to limiting effects of road salt runoff

So, if the idea of environmentally friendly de-icers is just a fairy tale, then what is the answer to dealing with the run-off of road salt every year? Well, New Brunswick may have stumbled upon the answer.

Earlier this year, results were released that showed a wetland connected to the City of Moncton's snow-disposal facility improved water quality. According to Ducks Unlimited Canada, chloride levels were reduced by 66 per cent to 93 per cent when comparing water samples from the inlet and outlet of the wetland.

"If we develop too close to these watercourses or [we] manipulate the system, then you start to get a decline in the ability for the the natural world to help clean these things up," said Adam Campbell, Ducks Unlimited Canada's manager of provincial operations for the Atlantic region, in a recent interview with The Weather Network.

A driving factor in the water quality improvement has been the dense vegetation in the channel leading to and within the pond, Campbell noted.

"It's quite shallow, which allows us to have a lot of emergent vegetation growing up through the surface of the water," said Campbell. "The more vegetation that comes into contact with the water, the more opportunity for absorption of nutrients. You can knock out sediment from suspension."

City of Moncton staff have been monitoring the water quality within the snowmelt collected by the wetland since 2014.

According to Ducks Unlimited Canada, run-off from municipal “snow dumps” can be particularly troublesome, and can contain gravel, salt and hydrocarbons from oil and gas, among other things.

The road salt in the snowmelt gets initially diluted by the water in the wetland, and then is absorbed by some of the plant species growing within it, acting as another source of pollutant removal, Campbell explained.

“The natural assets that wetlands provide are really impressive. The reality is we need to make sure that we maintain what we have because they're doing all of these services for us," said Campbell.

Even small doses of road salt affect aquatic species and landscapes

While the environmental effects of road salt have been widely documented, Arnott noted that aquatic organisms are affected even at levels "we thought [were] permissible."

"Any road salt is going to be bad. We know that it is toxic in aquatic environments. We have guidelines that allow for a little bit of it to go into the environment under the assumption that it's not going to have an impact on aquatic organisms," said Arnott.

The other concern with road salt is an increase in usage, another unintended consequence of climate change, Walker explained.

"As climate change occurs, we'll be pushing the window of where we can use salt farther and farther north. As far as I'm concerned, I haven't seen an eco-friendly de-icer that I would want to use, yet," said Walker.

As for the Moncton wetland project, Campbell said it should sustain itself for "quite a long time."

"We'll continue to monitor that and make sure that it's functioning the way it should," he said.

Meanwhile, Campbell wants to look for new opportunities and similar environmental projects to handle the snow, either in Moncton or adjacent to the city. Ducks Unlimited Canada has had a few municipalities reach out to it.

"I'm looking forward to seeing how that might lead to some more pond development on the landscape," said Campbell.

"We're just kind of scratching the surface here. There is likely some salt-tolerant vegetation along roadsides that can help out, and a combination of that and some wetlands might be a pretty cool path forward."

River guardians make strides in curbing salt pollution ahead of icy winter months - Capital Current

On the cusp of another frigid Ottawa winter, efforts are intensifying to reduce the use of de-icing road salt and prevent its toxic impacts on freshwater ecosystems.

Conservation agencies managing the watersheds of the Ottawa River’s two main tributaries on the Ontario side of the national capital — the Mississippi and Rideau rivers — are planning to impose new restrictions on salt use in the region.

This comes at a time when the Ottawa Riverkeeper advocacy group is stepping up its long-running campaign to curb the use of salt and monitor its effects on aquatic ecosystems.

The new policy amendments were proposed for the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan, an initiative outlining municipal guidelines for the maintenance of clean drinking water. The plan specifically targets significant drinking water threats in areas near surface water intakes and groundwater wells. Among the planned regulations to curb the use and impact of road salt on the environment is a prohibition on storing quantities greater than 300 kilograms.

Sidewalks on Carleton University’s campus were scattered Nov. 28 with huge amounts of salt, just a few hundred metres from the Rideau River. The preventative salting was carried out despite a lack of snow or freezing rain. [Photo @ Raquel Medina]

Despite the lack of snowfall so far in November, road salt has preemptively begun to make its way onto many streets, sidewalks and pathways in the city. The highly anticipated La Niña winter is expected to bring colder and wetter weather, increasing the likelihood of icy conditions. This has many residents, landlords, businesses and public organizations stockpiling salt in preparation for a challenging season.

Despite various environmental initiatives propelling the use of alternatives such as sand and wood pellets to combat slippery surfaces, road salt continues to reign supreme as the go-to way of de-icing — for municipalities and city residents — during the wintertime.

So why exactly is it so bad?

Road salt, or sodium chloride, has been a staple of winter maintenance in Canada for generations. Due to its melting and softening effects on hard ice, road salt is widely considered the most trustworthy substance for de-icing. Cheap and abundant, salt has always been the most affordable solution to slippery sidewalks across the country.

But what price are Canadians really paying for drier, safer roads?

Studies done by Environment and Climate Change Canada have found that in sufficient concentrations, road salts present a significant risk to biodiversity and aquatic environments.

Rebecca Kolarich is the water program manager for Environmental Defence. Photo @ Environmental Defence.

“Chlorides from road salts is a really big concern within fresh waterways all throughout the province,” said Rebecca Kolarich, an Ontario-based water program manager with Environmental Defence, a national advocacy group dedicated to protecting Canada’s lakes and rivers. “These chlorides from salts can transform cool freshwater streams into warmer saltier environments that are toxic for many species and humans.”

Road salt entering waterways doesn’t just affect the stream it filters into, but also the broader web of aquatic ecosystems it’s connected to.

“It’s like death by a thousand cuts,” said Kolarich. “It truly is a domino effect. When one ecosystem gets kind of messed up, it really messes up everything else.”

By changing the chemical composition of the water, road salt can reduce biodiversity overall and disrupt essential life processes in fish, creating complications with reproduction and development.

“It’s not always as dramatic as all fish float to the surface of the water and they’re dead,” said Dr. Dalal Hanna, a freshwater ecologist and Carleton University professor. “It’s akin to us when there was a massive smoke event here last year, nobody felt good when they were outside. Suddenly, your environment becomes uninhabitable. If you’re in this environment that’s really stressful, you may not die, but you’re going to experience all these impacts on your ability to function normally.”

Dr. Dalal Hanna is a freshwater ecologist, and an associate professor at Carleton University. [Photo @ Alex Tran]

According to Lauren Lawson, a PhD candidate in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Toronto, the negative effects of road salt don’t end with their impact on freshwater.

“Besides the water quality impacts,” said Lawson, “it can have really bad impacts on infrastructure, too.”

Excessive salt use can lead to the steady corrosion of metal. It’s also linked to increased rusting on infrastructure, a concern further emphasized by the scheduled replacement of the Alexandra Bridge across the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa. Commissioned reports reviewing the structural soundness of the 123-year-old link between Ottawa and Gatineau cited an exposure to salt as one of the reasons for its steady deterioration.

“People salt out of care for each other, because you want to keep people safe,” said Lawson, “but at the same time, we are putting at risk our freshwater ecosystems, our infrastructure, our cars, our pets’ paws — everything.”

The 123 year-old Alexandra Bridge can be seen over the Ottawa River. The bridge is expected to be replaced, with construction beginning in 2028. [Photo @ Raquel Medina]

In addition to infrastructure damage, salt-induced rusting can shorten the life of cars and trucks.

Krown Rust Control is a North America-wide vehicle-protection business that bills itself as a company “committed to continue developing environmentally friendly products that help improve the communities we live in.” The business specializes in rust prevention and solutions.

“Not only is the city using road salt,” said Taryn Almohammadi, manager at the Krown Rust Control shop on Catherine Street in Ottawa, “but they’re actually also using a brine, and the effects are tremendous. People are basically driving vehicles off the lot with rust already on them because of the conditions outside when they’re parked.”

Many advocacy organizations play a crucial role in pushing for a reduction in road salting practices across the city. Among them, Ottawa Riverkeeper is a leading voice for change with its comprehensive road salt monitoring program.

“People salt out of care for each other, because you want to keep people safe, but at the same time, we are putting at risk our freshwater ecosystems, our infrastructure, our cars, our pets’ paws — everything.”

— Lauren Lawson, PhD candidate at the University of Toronto

The program measures the concentration of sodium chloride in different waterways in the region, assessing how much road salt is being filtered into them, and how different ecosystems are being impacted.

The volunteer-led monitoring program began back in 2020, when volunteers were sent to collect samples from “trigger events” — including severe storms when salting was expected to occur — and bring them back for laboratory testing.

Volunteers assigned to specific creeks around the city would monitor their area following major snow or rainfall, and bring back samples to assess how much salt had run off into their waterway.

Over the last few years, the program has been steadily contributing to the Riverkeeper’s sample collection, now comprising five years’ worth of essential data identifying salty hotspots around the city. These are the places where there is especially voluminous salting activity. With this collection, the road salt monitoring program is now ready to usher in a new long-term phase of programming.

Following the expected publication of the Riverkeeper’s first five-year progress report in January 2025, the road salt monitoring program is set to expand its operations to implement consistent long-term monitoring, with volunteers to begin collecting samples every two weeks, regardless of weather conditions.

Another change to the program’s operations will see a shift in testing and collecting equipment, allowing volunteers to test chloride levels on-site by dipping chloride-detecting strips into the water, as opposed to sending samples to the lab.

This will allow the program to expand beyond the 35 sites currently being monitored across Ottawa and Gatineau and produce a better understanding of chloride concentrations in other areas.

Elizabeth Grater, Riverkeeper’s science programs coordinator, said the severity of the salt-pollution problem in the region has driven the expansion of the testing program.

Elizabeth Grater is the science programs coordinator for Ottawa Riverkeeper and runs their road salt monitoring program. [Photo @ Ottawa Riverkeeper]

“It’s really not just a winter problem. It is a year-round problem.” said Grater. “By putting those pollutants in these systems, they do find a way to come back to us.”

According to Grater, the damaging ecological effects of road salt in waterways cannot be understated, as they continue to impact a wide breadth of dependent ecosystems that humans benefit from every day. From biodiversity loss to harmful effects on drinking water — road salt puts much of what we take for granted at risk.

“A lot of people don’t feel as connected to the small creeks and even the Ottawa River,” said Grater. “They don’t think about how it can come back to them. It does. It does end up coming back and harming us.”

Snowplow tracking app launched to help Manitoba drivers plan winter driving routes

The new snowplow-tracking app shows updates on where snowplows are and where they have cleared roads in the past two hours.© CBC

Manitoba drivers can now plan safer winter highway travel based on which roads have been cleared after a storm, all at the click of an app.

The province on Friday launched Track My Plow, which shows real-time updates on where snowplows are and where they have cleared roads in the past two hours.

The feature is available as a smartphone app or through the Manitoba 511 website.

Combined with other travel information, such as descriptions of road conditions and closures, drivers can make informed decisions before heading out, saving time and improving safety, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor said in a news release.

Planning your route is one of the most effective ways to avoid the dangers of being stranded and needing a tow, CAA Manitoba's Ewald Friesen said in the release.

Sarnia's winter maintenance season has begun, and with it the city has written plans for balancing road safety with keeping salt use in check.

Recommended by Environment Canada for municipalities using more than 500 metric tonnes of salt annually, the city's new salt management and winter operation plans detail how crews monitor the weather, patrol roads, and clear slippery conditions when needed.

“It's really putting down on paper what we're already doing, but this is the first time we've put together plans like this,” said city engineering and operations general manager David Jackson.

According to the plans, approved by council this week, Sarnia maintains more than 900 kilometres of roadways along 11 routes, and 168 kilometres of sidewalks, using a combination of local staff and contracted services.

Minimum standards for snow clearance on highways range from four to 24 hours, depending on how well used roadways are, and their speed limits.

Salt and sand-salt mixes are applied between 70 and 160 kilograms per kilometre, depending on snowfall, the plans say.

And the city monitors ground water, catch basin outlets and other areas, while keeping in touch with local water agencies, to monitor the impact of salt use, the plans say.

“We are exploring groundwater monitoring but do not have a program in place for that yet,” Jackson said.

Winters lately have been milder, meaning less salt, Jackson said.

About $1.1 million is budgeted for winter maintenance in the city's 2025 draft budget.

“Always hard to predict,” Jackson said.

“One large winter storm can come up and then we'd be right back on track for what the budget was.”

Switching to mostly pre-treated salt has also reduced salt use, saving Sarnia money and mitigating environmental impact, Jackson said.

“Generally that treated salt will stick to the road a bit better and it leaves a residual on the road, which helps start the melting cycle the next time,” he said.

The city's winter maintenance season is flexible, but generally runs Nov. 15 to April 15, the plans say.

Sarnia uses about 2,100 tonnes of the pre-treated salt on average per winter maintenance season, based on the last five, Jackson said.

Last winter maintenance season, 2,265 tonnes were used, he said.

“It is the best product to help keep the roads clear in the winter, so we do have to use it,” Jackson said.

The reason for the plans is “to analyze the whole process and to minimize the use as much as possible,” he said.

The plans will be reviewed annually, city officials said in a report, noting changes may include route updates or technological upgrades as needed.

Good Question: Will Earth run out of salt?

Lexington has 8800 tons of salt stored, and that’s just in Lexington, not counting other towns in Kentucky. Where does all this salt come from, and how much is remaining since this salt collection has been going on for decades? Is salt still being produced in the earth? How long will the salt supply last at these rates?

The road salt used to clear snow and ice is essentially the same as table salt; both can come from mines.

Table salt is more refined and may have some additives, but both are sodium chloride.

The salt that is spread on roads in America is primarily mined in the U.S. We also import a decent amount from Canada and Chile.

American Mine Services says the largest salt mine in the world is in Ontario, Canada.

The salt in these mines comes from leftover deposits from oceans that once covered the land but have since evaporated.

The deposits are massive.

Scientists say that while an individual mine might eventually run out because of the abundance of those mines and the amount of salt in the ocean, there is no fear that humans will eventually run out of salt.

Government of Canada boosts financial support for winter roads, strengthening connections to remote Ontario First Nations

THUNDER BAY, ROBINSON SUPERIOR TREATY, ON, Nov. 22, 2024 /CNW/ - First Nation communities are working in close partnership with the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario to incorporate First Nations knowledge into winter road planning and climate adaptation strategies. This collaborative effort is aimed at enhancing resilience and ensuring sustainability as communities face the challenges of climate change.

Today, the Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services, hosted a roundtable in collaboration with Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) and other First Nation leaders to discuss the challenges posed by the shortened winter roads season. This meeting provides an opportunity to hear directly from community leaders in order to address immediate and longer-term issues faced by First Nation communities that rely on these winter roads.

Minister Hajdu also announced an additional $20 million in federal funding over four years for winter roads for Ontario First Nations communities. This new funding supplements the $7 million in annual winter road funding already allocated to these communities, as part of the Government of Canada's commitment to addressing the challenges posed by shorter winter road seasons.

Winter roads are a vital lifeline for remote First Nations, enabling the delivery of essential services and supplies to communities during the winter months. The Government of Canada cares about the future of these winter road networks and will continue to collaborate with partners to improve efficiencies in permitting processes for roads and water crossings.

Quotes

"Climate change has significantly shortened the window for winter roads to be accessible, leading to shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies, and increasing reliance in air transport. We are steadfast in our commitment to work closely with partners to find solutions that ensure reliable connectivity to remote communities."

The Honourable Patty Hajdu
Minister of Indigenous Services

Quick facts

• Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) provides over $7 million annually to support 32 remote First Nations in Ontario for the construction, maintenance, and improvement of approximately 3,200 kilometres of winter roads. With today's announcement of an additional $20 million over four years, this contribution will increase to $11 million annually.

• The Province of Ontario provides up to $6 million annually to First Nations for the construction, operation, and maintenance of winter roads. In 2023–2024, the Province introduced a $5 million annual program to improve winter road infrastructure, including enhancements to water crossings such as bridges and culverts.

• Budget 2024 allocated $45 million for the Berens River Bridge and Roads Project, which will connect Pikangikum to the provincial highway and strengthen the winter road network to six other communities: Poplar Hill First Nation, McDowell Lake First Nation, Deer Lake First Nation, North Spirit Lake First Nation, Sandy Lake First Nation, and Keewaywin First Nation.

New gritters and 10K of salt in Oxfordshire ahead of winter | Bicester Advertiser

Oxfordshire has a new fleet of gritting vehicles, a freshly built salt barn, 60 specialist drivers and over 10,000 tonnes of road salt prepared for winter.

Oxfordshire County Council and its highways maintenance contractor, Milestone Infrastructure, sent gritters out and about for the first time earlier this week as the cold weather hit.

The new salt barn at the Deddington highways depot, near Banbury, keeps road salt in the optimum conditions for spreading, avoiding wastage and ensuring that the salt is more effective, so smaller quantities can be used.

Councillor Andrew Gant, Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet member for transport management, said: “We are committed to keeping our network of major roads free from ice and snow to minimise the risk of accidents and ensure the smooth flow of traffic.

"This investment in new equipment and skills demonstrates how serious we are about it.”

The new Deddington barn can hold 2,800 tonnes of road salt, enough to grit over 23,333km of roads. 

With the completion of the salt barn project, there is now no uncovered road salt stored in Oxfordshire, putting the county ahead of many other local authorities.

Oxfordshire has a 5,500 tonne salt barn at the Drayton highways depot, near Abingdon, and a 2,200 tonne capacity barn sited at the Woodcote winter depot in south Oxfordshire.

It means there is more than 10,000 tonnes of salt stored across the county.

Oxfordshire also has a new fleet of gritting vehicles, consisting of sixteen 26 tonne trucks, 11 18 tonne vehicles, two 7.5 tonne trucks and one 3.5 tonne ‘baby gritter’ to treat very narrow roads and the park and rides.

In total, 30 vehicles are stationed at three winter depots ready for when the temperatures drop.

The winter service crew of 60 drivers have all undertaken familiarisation sessions with the new trucks and some drivers have also completed skid pan training at a specialist training centre in Hampshire.

Oxfordshire County Council salts approximately 42 per cent of Oxfordshire’s road network, one of the highest rates in the country.

While Oxford City Council looks after the gritting inside the Oxford ring road, Oxfordshire County Council has responsibility for the rest of the county – including all A roads, B roads and some C roads, apart from the M40, A43 and A34, which are covered by National Highways.

Cllr Gant added: "If you do find yourself behind one of our gritter lorries, which are restricted to 30mph when they are carrying out their work, please be patient and considerate – remember that they are there to keep you safe.”

Sarnia adopts winter maintenance and salt management plans | The Sarnia Observer

Sarnia’s winter maintenance season has begun, and with it the city has written plans for balancing road safety with keeping salt use in check.

Recommended by Environment Canada for municipalities using more than 500 metric tonnes of salt annually, the city’s new salt management and winter operation plans detail how crews monitor the weather, patrol roads, and clear slippery conditions when needed.

“It’s really putting down on paper what we’re already doing, but this is the first time we’ve put together plans like this,” said city engineering and operations general manager David Jackson.

According to the plans, approved by council this week, Sarnia maintains more than 900 kilometres of roadways along 11 routes, and 168 kilometres of sidewalks, using a combination of local staff and contracted services.

Minimum standards for snow clearance on highways range from four to 24 hours, depending on how well used roadways are, and their speed limits.

Salt and sand-salt mixes are applied between 70 and 160 kilograms per kilometre, depending on snowfall, the plans say.

And the city monitors ground water, catch basin outlets and other areas, while keeping in touch with local water agencies, to monitor the impact of salt use, the plans say.

“We are exploring groundwater monitoring but do not have a program in place for that yet,” Jackson said.

Winters lately have been milder, meaning less salt, Jackson said.

Sarnia salting and plowing routes, via a city winter operations plan. (Screenshot) jpg, SO, apsmc

About $1.1 million is budgeted for winter maintenance in the city’s 2025 draft budget.

“Always hard to predict,” Jackson said.

“One large winter storm can come up and then we’d be right back on track for what the budget was.”

Switching to mostly pre-treated salt has also reduced salt use, saving Sarnia money and mitigating environmental impact, Jackson said.

“Generally that treated salt will stick to the road a bit better and it leaves a residual on the road, which helps start the melting cycle the next time,” he said.

The city’s winter maintenance season is flexible, but generally runs Nov. 15 to April 15, the plans say.

Sarnia uses about 2,100 tonnes of the pre-treated salt on average per winter maintenance season, based on the last five, Jackson said.

Last winter maintenance season, 2,265 tonnes were used, he said.

“It is the best product to help keep the roads clear in the winter, so we do have to use it,” Jackson said.

The reason for the plans is “to analyze the whole process and to minimize the use as much as possible,” he said.

The plans will be reviewed annually, city officials said in a report, noting changes may include route updates or technological upgrades as needed.