When it comes to bad weather, Montgomery County officials think safety first, the environment next.
Safety means the county Department of Transportation employees will do all they can to make sure the 5,200 miles of county roads are cleared and safe to drive over. Environmentally, it means using as little rock salt as possible.
On Thursday and Friday, transportation employees pre-treated county roads with a salt brine mixture in preparation for the predicted wintery mix. That is all they will do if it snows just a bit before converting to rain.
If it turns out the area receives several inches of snow, then the plows will drop some of the 40,000 tons of salt that was purchased from Chile.
The goal is to use as little salt as possible, just enough to keep roads free of snow and ice but not too much to send an excessive amount of salt into our water system.
Thursday, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Transportation and WSSC Water launched a Salt Wise campaign to raise awareness of how salt damages underground pipes, the water that residents drink and the environment.
It’s not just county crews that need to be stingy with spreading too much salt. It’s residents too.
The county urges residents to shovel snow right away and often, then sprinkle a minimal amount of salt on the cleared path. That way people will not be shoveling away the salt they just laid down, only to throw down more.
Then, when the weather clears, sweep up the salt. It can be reused again and again during future storms.
“While salt is crucial for maintaining safe winter conditions, excessive use can have detrimental effects on our environment and water supply,” said County Executive Marc Elrich. “Salt runs off into storm drains, local streams, and eventually, to the Potomac and Patuxent rivers, which are drinking water sources for people in Montgomery County.”
He added, “Salt can corrode concrete and masonry, harm pets, damage surrounding plants and lawns and adversely impact resident’s health through impacts to the water supply, which is why we need to all use it sparingly and clean it up after storms whenever possible.”
“We apply the minimum amount of salt necessary to ensure public safety during snow events,” said MCDOT Director Chris Conklin. “We activate a Storm Operations Center, known as SOC, where staff is regularly checking and reporting out conditions and pavement temperatures around the county during snowstorms and we keep a close eye on the forecast. This allows us to determine if using salt is necessary in specific locations.”
Also, he noted, “We have implemented rubber tipped plow blades on all our plows, allowing for earlier plowing. We also use salt brine, a 23 percent salt to water solution to reduce the need for salt use.”
Officials are asking anyone who notices a pile of salt on the roadway after a snowstorm to call 311, County employees will come collect it for future use.
To keep track of the county’s efforts, check the Winter Storm Information Portal for information on snow plowing schedules, where to park, how to identify county-maintained versus state-maintained roadways and more.
