VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI. — Winter will be here sooner than we know it, and as road commissions prepare for the season, some are looking to replace salt with better options.
The Van Buren County Road Commission is trying to steer clear of using sodium chloride as much as possible.
"Not only is it destructive to vehicles, it's actually damaging to the substructure of the roads," said Greg Brucks, director of operations. "Sodium chloride will actually mix with water and filter into the roadbed itself, allowing it to freeze and thaw at different levels and break up sooner."
Right now, the commission uses rock salt that has a high mixture of sodium chloride, but to minimize its damage, Brucks says they're mixing it with sand and calcium chloride. These materials are considered safer for the environment, cars, and also work better at lower temperatures.
"With your typical rock salt mixture and nothing else, if you get down to around 17 degrees, you lose a lot of its functionality, some of your magnesium chlorides and your calcium chlorides. You can get well below zero and still have a high degree of functionality in ice melting," Brucks explained.
Although they want to switch completely from sodium chloride, it could take years. "The rough price for rock salt now is about $90 a ton. A rough price for some of the alternatives is around $200 a ton," he said.
Considering the Van Buren County trucks carry 10 to 12 tons at a time, Brucks says the alternatives will be expensive.
"As of now, we try to get better every year. But from a financial standpoint, some of the alternatives out there are much too expensive to switch to completely right now," he added.
Although it can take years to make the switch completely, finding more environmentally friendly options is a priority for the Van Buren County Road Commission.
