With a decent dusting of snow so far this season, the City of Toronto has already delved deep into the enormous mountains of salt to try and keep roads, sidewalks and other potentially slippery surfaces ice-free.
But, some residents worry that staff may be overdoing it this year, complaining of too-generous heaps of the stuff crunching underfoot in public spaces all over the city.
Though it is corrosive to boots, cars, doggo paws and the ecosystem in general, road salt is, unfortunately, a much-needed tool in the City of Toronto’s winter arsenal, ensuring people can get around safely.
But, it’s become a fine balance between preventing ice-related accidents (and, importantly, consequent lawsuits) and protecting the environment.
A post to the Toronto subreddit this month is one of many complaining that the City is over-salting its public spaces.
While the City does aim to reduce the use of the admittedly toxic material through a dedicated salt management plan, come wintertime, it doesn’t seem to be shy in spreading it anywhere and everywhere.
“Salt doesn’t disappear with the snow; it washes into Ontario’s creeks, lakes and rivers and stays there. This is bad for the environment and can harm wildlife, or even contaminate drinking water,” the City states on its website.
“The City is aware of the risks of road salt to the environment and has been making improvements to the way salt is transported, stored and used to reduce the amount of salt entering the environment. The reduction in salt use is balanced with the need to keep roads and sidewalks safe for users at a reasonable cost.”
A spokesperson clarified to blogTO that these improvements include calibrating salt spinners and pre-wetting the material to create brine, which ensures a more consistent and effective spread of the de-icer. Trucks also spread the liquid brine before snow events to help prevent ice from forming in the first place, reducing the need for subsequent salting.
The City has also worked to raise awareness about the best ways to salt private property, and cautions businesses and residents not to over-salt.
Still, scientists have been observing increasing, measurable impacts on the city’s flora and fauna in recent years.
“We do monitor chloride levels specifically in our streams, and we’ve found that over time, the chloride levels are increasing, and it’s mostly happening in these more urban areas where there is more salt. That is definitely a concern in the freshwater,” says Lyndsay Cartwright, a research scientist specializing in watershed planning and ecosystem science at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.
While humans only notice their neighbourhood being inundated with salt around snow events, the effects last year-round and compound over time. Salt may be out-of-mind for us by spring, but that’s right when it starts to become the most dangerous to our animal compatriots.
That would be due to what I would call “Budget Level Maintenance.” Either way, salt sucks for multiple reasons. Time to find something else that works at well below freezing, doesn’t ruin clothes or vehicles, and doesn’t salinate the freshwater table https://t.co/uPr6aSGPtf
— Uncledropsí (@DropsicusCaesar) December 5, 2020
“When it rains or the snow starts to melt, it does run off. Then it can be stored and released slowly over time. It can run into the soil and stay in the soil next to the roads. It also can run into our stormwater management ponds, and it’s stored there. And then it can also go into our groundwater,” Cartwright says.
“We’re seeing that it’s an issue in the winter months, but it’s also an issue in the summer because of those kind of reservoirs where it’s slowly leaching out into the fresh water. This is especially important for organisms who are breeding and are the most active in those summer months.”
She adds that the detriments to aquatic invertebrate populations have been especially bad, and are worsening over time as salt concentrations increase.
Toronto should look to Ottawa and the products that are used near the waterways. My old neighbourhood used a non-salt base gravel mix. Made it easier on the dog’s feet as well.
PS Toronto, salt is not “snow removal”.
— Marlie Poirier (@MarlieP62) March 13, 2021
Potential solutions include better training of winter maintenance staff — something that the City says it has already prioritized — along with public education campaigns, special treatment of particularly salt-vulnerable areas (like the waterfront), consideration of more eco-friendly salt alternatives, and even legislation to provide salt contractors with better liability protection so they are not so inclined to over-salt.
Every day, residents can also be more aware of their own habits, not just as far as salting on their property but also being adequately prepared for Toronto winters with proper footwear and tires to help mitigate the need for so much de-icer.
