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Salty dilemma - Brief Article

Environment - March 1, 2003

Every year, Canadians apply five million metric tonnes of salt to deice roads. Unfortunately, the salt has negative and even deadly effects on both terrestrial and aquatic plants and animals, according to a study released by Environment Canada. Roadway salt attracts animals such as deer, moose, porcupines, and hares, but for some of the animals that lick the salt off roads, the treat becomes an addiction. Some birds can die from as little as two large grains of roadside salt, according to Pierre Mineau, research scientist for the Canadian Wildlife Service. In addition, plants as far as 80 meters from multilane highways suffer from salt absorption, and many common landscape trees are sensitive to road salt. The Riversides Stewardship Alliance (RSA) studied salt levels in Toronto-area waterways in 2001 and found salt in area creeks and rivers at concentrations between 2 and 29 times greater than the provincial limit of 100 milligrams per liter (mg/L). According to RSA's Kevin Mercer, some waterways had salt lev els capable of causing short-term toxicity--defined by Environment Canada as 1400 mg/L. RSA has called for a 20 to 50 percent reduction in salt use. Although alternative de-icers do exist, they cost several times more than salt, so for the time being, to ensure road safety, salt use will continue. However, a risk management team is being established by Environment Canada to regulate and reduce the use of road salt.

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