Salt Management

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child holding up snow shovel

It's time for a salting shift

Waterloo Region relies on groundwater for drinking water. Over time the salt we put on the ground can end up in our drinking water and cause it to taste salty. This includes ice melters and products labelled environmentally friendly.

After the salt melts the ice, it doesn't go away. Salt is damaging to the environment including our community's drinking water. It may soak into the ground to mix with groundwater (our drinking water) or enter a storm basin that connects with the local waterway.

snow and ice clearing tips

Help keep salt out of groundwater:

Snow and ice clearing tips for homeowners
Winter maintenance resources for commercial properties
Wear winter boots with a good tread and consider installing winter tires on your car
Read the I Am Groundwater blog "six mistruths about winter salt"

Why salt is a water quality concern

Chloride levels from salt and ice melter are increasing in groundwater wells (our drinking water). Overtime this could make our drinking water taste salty.
Chloride is highly soluble. Once it dissolves in water there's really no effective way to remove it. Current water and wastewater treatment does not remove chloride from the water.
A salty taste is detectable when chloride levels reach 250 milligrams per litre.
The below image shows chloride levels in Region of Waterloo municipal groundwater wells between 1998 and 2018. Red coloured dots show the highest levels at over 400 milligrams per litre.

Water quality (chloride) at Region of Waterloo well fields between 1973 and 2014

What the Region of Waterloo is doing

On the roads, the Region of Waterloo Transportation Operations follows a comprehensive salt management plan
On our properties, the Region of Waterloo only hires Smart About Salt certified contractors with salt management training. Region of Waterloo winter maintenance staff also receive Smart About Salt training.
Through our water protection programs, the Region of Waterloo Water Services is monitoring water quality of municipal drinking water sources, educating youth, working with partners to improve salting practices including through Source Water Protecting Plan policies and supporting the Smart About Salt training and certification program.

Blog posts about salt management

In the news

Kitchener Today, October 2020: Region to spend similar amount on road salt this winter
CBC News, January 2020: Salty dragonflies mean more mosquitoes, researchers find
The Weather Network, December 2019: Why road salt can be ineffective against removing snow and ice
BCIT News, February 2019: The road less salted: a look into the impacts of road salt
CBC News, January 2019: For the good of the planet, can we curb our addiction to road salt
Waterloo Region Record, November 2018: Chloride levels are rising in Waterloo Region drinking water
570 News, November 2019: Why Ontario needs a new approach to snow removal (starts at 21:30)
National Post, January 2018: How Canada's addiction to salt is ruining everything
TVO, January 2018: Oversalted: why Ontario needs a new approach to snow removal
WWF, January 2018: Wildlife is dying due to road salt, and it must stop
Water Canada, January 2017: Has road salt run its course?
Waterloo Region Record, December 2017: new campaign aims to raise awareness about winter salt use