ELORA – Road salt damages roads, bridges, cars, shoes, pet paws, vegetation and, most importantly, drinking water, Centre Wellington council heard on Dec. 15.
The solution is for the province to establish best practices and regulate the amount of road salt used by municipalities, private contractors and citizens, said Karen Rathwell, who addressed council on behalf of Water Watchers and the Ontario Salt Pollution Coalition.
“Since 2001, road salt was declared a toxic substance. It causes irreversible damage,” she told council. “But until liability is addressed, it will be a huge problem.”
Rathwell said there is no way to take chloride out of water, and that includes drinking water, which is a municipal responsibility.
She asked council to pass a resolution urging the province to convene a stakeholder advisory committee, review liability and establish best practices. Some 40 per cent of road salt is found in parking lots, she said.
Snow removal companies pay huge insurance costs and deductibles, and therefore over-salt “from fear of litigation,” she said, adding Landscape Ontario has also been lobbying the government to make changes.
“We need to take action,” Rathwell continued. “Surely we can find a way to live safely in winter without poisoning our water.”
Local resident Ernest Kalwa echoed Rathwell’s concerns. As a fly fisher, Centre Wellington resident and environmentalist, he said his “goal is to see Centre Wellington as a leader and champion of the environment.”
He added Friends of the Grand River, Freshwater Conservation Canada (formerly Trout Unlimited) and the Suzuki Foundation also support safe use of road salt.
Councillor Lisa MacDonald put forth a motion for staff to explore ways to lobby the province to increase training for independent contractors, to set a single standard for road salt use, and to establish best practices to reduce the use of road salt. Council approved the motion.
