Road Salts are Hazardous to PA Rivers, Streams, and Critters

By Danielle Smith, Keystone State News Connection

Just like overindulging in salt is bad for your health, so too is the excessive use of road salt on the environment.

Since 2020, PennDOT reported applying nearly 600,000 tons of salt to icy roads.

Harry Campbell, Pennsylvania director of science policy and advocacy for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said research by the U.S. Geological Survey found streams throughout the nation are getting saltier, by almost 40%. Campbell stressed the salty runoff is harming freshwater aquatic creatures and pointed out that a single teaspoon of rock salt can pollute five gallons of fresh water.

“Those freshwater critters and creatures, like the brook trout or the Eastern Hellbender, are actually found having toxic effects from that salt that is now in the waters,” Campbell explained.

Campbell highlighted Winter Salt Week, which starts on Monday, Jan. 27, as a national effort to educate people about the environmental effects of using road salt and to promote safer alternatives. He called it a chance for Pennsylvanians to learn better techniques for deicing roads, bridges, sidewalks, and parking lots.

Campbell noted researchers are exploring eco-friendly options like beetroot juice but they remain costly. He emphasized proper salt use — applying the right amount, at the right time, in the right place — could help minimize the effects on plants and animals. And he suggested homeowners opt for less harmful products, like those made with magnesium chloride.

“Magnesium chloride is less harmful for pets, has a less chance of actually affecting vegetation and ultimately polluting rivers and streams,” Campbell observed. “But an even better choice is a product that is made of calcium magnesium acetate.”

The pet-safe products are not toxic like rock salt, which can also harm roadside vegetation. Salt pollution in waterways corrodes infrastructure, contaminates drinking water, and disrupts the natural balance of heavy metals and nutrients in waterways.

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Source: bctv