Barrie Using Less Salt On Snowy Roads

Saving Money And The Environment

A pretty good workout for Barrie’s plows, sanders and salters over the last couple of weeks with two storm days. Good to know the city has been taking steps to minimize the environmental impact of salt use, without compromising safety on city streets. City council learned Monday night staff have reassessed priority and secondary routes, finding that some areas no longer fit the priority designation and are being plowed and sanded, but not salted (24 kilometres of roads have been removed from salt routes). There has also been an emphasis on reducing salt use in areas where it could impact the water supply. The use of brine on city streets prior to a snow event has also helped reduce the need for as much salt. In addition to saving the environment, these measures have resulted in a cost of saving of an average $480,000 dollars a year over the last ten years.