City of Greater Sudbury campaigns for residents to use less road salt

A lot of people use too much salt to melt ice on their driveways, according to the city of Greater Sudbury.

To educate people on how to use road salt more responsibly, the Greater Sudbury Public Library has started to hand out 12-ounce, or around 340 ml, cups, which would contain enough salt to cover 10 sidewalk squares or around 500 square feet.

"The messaging we're trying to give is to use salt responsibly," said Jennifer Babin-Fenske, the climate change co-ordinator with the city of Greater Sudbury.

"And when you cover an area, you're not covering it like a blanket with salt, you're supposed to use it to help with a little bit of the ice formation."

Babin-Fenske said it's important to use as little salt as possible in the winter because it can be corrosive and damage the environment in large quantities.

"You know, it's harmful for the environment," she said.

"It can corrode things like your concrete walkways and things like that. And a lot of people are really concerned about their pets and their paws."

Babin-Fenske added that road salt is only effective at melting ice until around around -12 C. She said people should consider alternatives like sand, for traction.

Babin-Fenske said the city follows a salt management plan for winter maintenance and only uses salt on 25 per cent of the city's roads.

Class 4-6 roads, which are rural and residential streets, only get snowplows and sand for traction. Main arterial roads and secondary collector routes are salted before and after a winter storm, if the outside temperature is not too low.

City contractors are also certified through the Winter Salt Management Program.

According to the program's website, people should shovel their driveway well before adding any salt or "de-icing material."

Once the driveway is cleared, they should only sprinkle small amounts of salt, or a salt alternative, on icy areas.