At last week's NorCo Energy Committee meeting, Little Lehigh Watershed's Jennifer Latzgo advised Council members that we're all getting a bit too salty. The amount of road salt spread during winters has more than doubled over the past 50 years nationwide. Her group performed a study of the Little Lehigh Creek in 2023 and have documented an increase in chloride levels in areas where development has become denser. PennDot recommends between 100-300 lbs. of salt per road mile, but some municipalities apply 1,000.
This matters.
Increased chloride levels are certainly unsafe for aquatic life but can be unsafe for humans as well. Lehigh County Water Authority gets its drinking water from the Little Lehigh, which has documented that sodium chloride content has doubled over the past 20 years, sometimes over 50 mg/l. People on low sodium diets are discouraged from drinking more than 20 mg/l of water daily, but the water filtration systems in place are incapable of removing it. Once it's there, it's there.
Excessive road salt weakens soil permeability and fertility, increases its and density and also reduces the number of soil microbes and their activity.
It also damages infrastructure is being found in the United States, causing about 5 billion dollars a year in damage in the US to our roads, bridges, culverts and concrete structures.
It is a problem for vehicles, as many of us can attest.
I can also cause very, very expensive damage to flooring in buildings.
It also corrodes drinking water pipes and doing that causes the leeching of toxic chemicals such as lead.
It takes just one teaspoon of salt to permanently pollute 5 gallons of water, and just one 50 lb. bag to permanently pollute a swimming pool.
Much of the problem is the result of the correct amount if salt that needs to be applied to roads. She suggested that municipalities use brining, which is cheaper, instead of the direct application of salt. She said equipment should be calibrated regularly to prevent excessive salting.
A coffee mug of salt is enough for a 20' long driveway. Excess salt should be swept up and used again.
