Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. It’s the time of year I attend manufacturer showcases premiering new products, mostly paver or block retaining wall systems made of concrete. Brine and road salt are not kind to concrete, though many paver manufacturers tout that theirs are resistant to both, primarily because they are made of high-density concrete, twice as strong and less absorbent as poured concrete. Still, the impact of road salt can be devastating, especially on plants, vehicles, and the environment. Thankfully, experimental alternatives are underway, and there are non-toxic home remedies.
Impact of Road Salt on Plants and the Environment
Road salt, also called rock salt or sodium chloride (NaCl), is a mineral mined naturally. It is essentially the same as what’s in our saltshakers, except it’s less purified. It’s only effective in melting snow and ice to about fifteen degrees. Below that, they add magnesium chloride or calcium chloride. And it’s the chloride ions that cause much of the environmental damage, dehydrating plants and killing small aquatic organisms. It also corrodes our cars and hurts our canine kids’ feet. However, calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) is safe for natural stones and our pets’ paws.
We’ve all noticed the white lines of brine municipalities apply, cheaper than rock salt. It doesn’t bounce off the road, can be sprayed before a storm, and remains effective for up to three days. In most states, brine is a combination of rock salt and magnesium chloride mixed with water. Auto experts claim magnesium chloride is far more corrosive than rock salt to cars and can find its way into the nooks and crannies, making it hard to wash off and causing our vehicles to corrode faster.
There’s a Beet Juice Alternative
Experimental alternatives to brine are underway in hopes of being more environmentally friendly. One such alternative is beet wastewater from plants that process sugar beets. Because of the sugars in the wastewater, it works at lower temperatures and adheres better than brine alone.
A recent article published by the Canada Salt Groups website (October 22, 2024) reports that beet juice combined with road salt decreases salt usage, resulting in less environmental damage and harm to plants. “However, there are some concerns that it might raise the water’s biochemical oxygen demand, which can impact aquatic life,” the article said. So, it’s not a perfect solution.
Pickle Brine – Effective to Minus 6 Degrees
Cities have also been dabbling with pickle brine, effective in temperatures as low as minus six degrees. It keeps snow and ice from bonding with the road surface. Most promising is that it lessens the amount of chloride released into the environment by 14 to 29 percent. Then there’s cheese brine from soft cheeses like mozzarella, primarily used in Wisconsin, where cheese is plentiful.
Akadia Johnson wrote in an article on The Mississippi Watershed Management Organization website. (December 2, 2024): “While its novelty makes it an attention-grabber online, it raises important questions about practicality, environmental impacts, and how it differs from more established liquid solutions.” This means pickle brine, too, can harm the environment—maybe (hopefully) less so.
Remedies for Salt-Impacted Plants:
Calcium Magnesium Acetate is also known as CMA. Safe for natural stone and pet paws.
Late winter road salt is the most damaging to plants. Beginning in early March, plants start breaking dormancy. Their roots begin absorbing nutrients and water from the soil for the soon-to-be leaves. Toxic chloride ions, which usually leach from the soil rapidly, are more likely absorbed than when the plant is dormant.
Avoid piling salt-laden snow around plants. When choosing new plants, select salt-tolerant species within 30 feet of salted roads. For existing plants, move the salt-laden snow from the root zone as soon as the thaw begins. On young trees, the root zone is about the width of the dripline of the branches. It can be twice to four times as wide on older trees. Of course, be considerate where you move the snow.
When temperatures rise above freezing, hose fresh water around trees or shrubs to flush out the salt. Sadly, the salt will end up in our water sources— an ongoing dilemma.
Other Alternatives to Salt
Better plowing, shoveling, and heated pavements can help. You can install radiant heat under paver walks and driveways, and there’s testing underway to use solar panels to heat water in pipes installed under roads. Those sound less stinky and sticky than beet juice or pickle and cheese brine, but whatever works best for our safety, our dear Earth, and the wildlife we share it with.
How about using cat litter, sand, coffee grounds, and cinders at home rather than salt? And maybe add a few prayers that Mother Nature will soon stop messing around with Old Man Winter (smile).
