BEWARE: Over Salting During Michigan Winters Can Be Harmful

Michigan winters can be some of the most brutal times of the year as we are slammed with tons of snow and cold temperatures. The bitter weather causes many of us to limit our social lives and even brings about seasonal depression for others. While winter may have its advantages, there are tons of small inconveniences that are associated as well.

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Shoveling snow is one of the tasks that most of us dread having to do and many of us will pawn the activity off on a younger family member or kid from the neighborhood for a few bucks. I don't blame anyone who pays someone else to do it because being cold is something I don't enjoy either. Shoveling may make it easier to walk but there is a task that may be more important and keeps you safe.

Laying out deicing salt on your walkway, sidewalk, and driveway could be the difference between walking upright and slipping and sliding all over the place. Salt is meant to help break down the ice and melt faster, clearing the roads, sidewalks, and driveways. Although this task is important for safety, salting wrong or over doing it can have consequences.

How Should Someone In Michigan Apply Salt?

The first step is to clear the hard surface of the snow and once the surface is as clear as possible, begin to sprinkle salt on the surface. It is said that 12 ounces of salt can cover a 20ft driveway or 10 sidewalk squares. You should also make sure that the salt is spread out amongst the area so there is space between the grains. The best time to apply salt to your surfaces is during daylight hours as the combination of salt and sunshine will help clear the space.

Being careful is important as over salting can have various impacts on the environment. Using too much salt can contaminate fresh groundwater and can also cause surfaces to be even more slippery than they were before. Salt is also harmful to cars, infrastructure, bridges, homes, the environment as a whole, and our wallets as the costs to repair these damages is not cheap.

More Tips & Alternative Products

As explained previously, salt isn't the healthiest product for our world so here are a few safe alternative options to use instead:

• Calcium Magnesium Acetate (CMA), commonly known as Ice Melt, CMA causes less damage to hard-surfaced driveways, is pet-friendly and is environmentally friendly. And as a bonus, it is more effective in colder temperatures. The downside to CMA is that it is more expensive than road salt, which is why it is not used on the roads.
• Sand or Kitty Litter- this is recommended for colder days as salt has been found to be almost ineffective in temperatures below 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Gravel Mixture may be spread to provide extra texture and traction to prevent vehicles from sliding, similar to what is used during MCRC chip seal operations.
• Others- It is suggested that homeowners use alternatives that don't contain chloride like, potassium acetate and calcium magnesium acetate, brine solutions (i.e beet juice) and different traction materials, including sand and ashes

Below are some helpful tips on how to use salt or other products when clearing your surfaces:

• Sweep up extra salt and reuse it, said the MI Water Stewardship Program.
• Plant native plant species that are salt-tolerant near paved areas, said the City of Monroe. For a list of plants, visit grownative.org/salt-tolerant-native-plants.
• Ensure that the storm drains closest to your property are clear of snow and other debris. Do not shovel snow into storm drains as they empty directly into local water bodies, said the City of Monroe.