Motorists and pedestrians may be safer with salted roads and sidewalks but some environmental experts say the de-icer could be doing more harm than good.

Jessica Forres reports...



As salt trucks hit the pavement to clear icy roads, Sujay Kaushal with the University of Maryland's Department of Environmental Science,…. says the compound is causing streams in Maryland to become saltier.

WHAT IT MEANS IS THAT IT CAN INFLUENCE THE TYPES OF AQUATIC LIFE IN OUR STREAMS. I THINK IT COULD LEAD TO CONTAMINATION OF SOME DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES, BUT I THINK IT ALSO CAN BE AN INDICATOR OF OTHER CONTAMINANTS IN WATER AS WELL.

Kaushal says the salt dissolves in the melting snow and runs down a storm drain and eventually into a stream and drinking water supplies.

EVEN IF WE QUIT APPLYING ROAD SALT TO OUR WATERSHED, THE WATER WOULD STILL REMAIN SALTY FOR DECADES. THIS ROAD SALT ACCUMULATES IN OUR GROUND WATER AND IS A CHRONIC PROBLEM.

The underlying problem is development. Kaushal explains, land coverage has increased in the region, by 40 percent since 1986. He researched the salinity of several streams in Baltimore.

WHEN SOME OF THESE WATER SHEDS WERE DEVELOPED, WE WERE SEEING CHLORIDE CONCENTRATIONS WERE ROUGHLY A QUARTER OF SEA WATER.

Kaushal says salinity has also increased four fold in some of Baltimore's reservoirs.

Jessica Forres WAMU 885 News

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As the snowy weather continues to sweep across the area and the salt trucks hit the pavement to clear icy roads, some environmental experts warn the de-icer may be doing more harm than good.

Jessica Forres reports.....

Motorists may be safer with salted roads, but Sujay Kaushal...with University of Maryland's Department of Environmental Science… says Maryland's waterways are not.

WHEN THAT SALT HITS THE GROUND OR HITS THE PAVEMENT THAT SNOW MELTS IMMEDIATELY TRICKLE ON THE ROADWAY, DOWN A SLOPE AND INTO A STORM DRAIN AND INTO A STREAM.

And eventually into our drinking water supplies…Kaushal…says chloride concentrations have increased four fold in some of Baltimore's reservoirs over the last twenty years.

BASICALLY IF THAT RATE OF SALINIZATION CONTINUES INTO THE FUTURE THERE COULD BE SOME DRINKING WATER PROBLEMS.

The underlying problem, Kaushal says, is development, such as new parking lots and roads. He suggests building green infrastructure is a possible solution.

IF WE INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF STORM WATER MANAGEMENT FACILITIES AND INNOVATIVE STORM WATER MANAGEMENT THIS CAN BASICALLY SLOW THE FLOW WATER TO THE STREAM AND HELP RETAIN HELP RETAIN OR TREAT THE WATER BEFORE IT ENTERS RIVERS OR STREAMS.

People with heart ailments and high blood pressure should check the salt content of their drinking water.

Jessica Forres WAMU 885 News