NLIS 6
November 30, 2001
(Works, Services and Transportation)

 

Transportation minister outlines salt management plan

Works, Services and Transportation Minister Percy Barrett announced today details of the department�s salt management plan.

"Environment Canada has undertaken a study of road salt and as a result of that study is asking road authorities to examine ways to reduce salt usage," said Barrett. "This is something my department has been looking at for the past several years. We�ve discovered we can use salt and other ice control products more efficiently and still maintain service levels."

For the past year the department has participated in a national salt management working group with Transport Canada, Environment Canada, the Transportation Association of Canada and other provincial and municipal jurisdictions. The purpose of the working group is to assist road authorities in developing salt management plans and to share ideas on improving salt usage.

Environment Canada announced today a 60-day public comment period, starting December 1, on its recommendation that road salt be added to Schedule 1 under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). The recommendation follows a five-year scientific assessment that revealed road salt could pose a risk to plants, animals and the aquatic environment if found in high enough quantities. Environment Canada has stated the study focused on environmental impacts, as there is no evidence to suggest road salt affects human health.

"Environment Canada is not banning the use of road salt. It is a necessity in Canadian climates, and this is especially true in the Atlantic provinces. Although we will work to reduce salt usage and wastage, road safety remains our top priority," said Barrett.

Salt reduction will be achieved through improvements in application and distribution; more efficient storage and handling; training; and possible use of alternate products and technology. The department will focus on more efficient use of salt to minimize impact on vegetation along roadsides and storage facilities. Some actions being undertaken by the department include:

  • Retrofit winter maintenance equipment with automatic spreader controls. This will reduce wastage on roadsides by allowing the application of salt to be defined to a more precise area. The department plans to add spreader control devices to all ice control vehicles in future;

  • Continue to implement better storage and handling of materials to reduce leaching from storage facilities. This will include increased use of mixing pads (paved areas on which to mix materials), salt domes with paved floors (protection from rain) and more covered stockpiles;

  • Expand training of personnel to better handle material in depots when loading material into equipment;

  • Testing and reviewing alternatives to salt and their possible use in certain areas of the province. This year the department will try pre-wetting of salt which makes salt stick to pavement more, reducing the bounce onto road sides thereby increasing the benefits of salt.

  • Investigate possible implementation of newer winter maintenance technologies into Newfoundland and Labrador�s program;

  • Improved methods of monitoring and tracking usage (application rates) of ice control materials; and

  • Information sharing with other jurisdictions about best practices is ongoing and will continue.

"I would like to reassure the people of the province that any measures taken to improve salt usage will not compromise the safety of the traveling public," said Barrett. "Road salt is an essential tool in effective winter maintenance and will continue to be used."

Media contact: Lynn Evans, Communications, (709) 729-3015.

2001 11 30               4:30 p.m.

 


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