Road salt is a ubiquitous treatment for snow and ice, and its application helps to keep roads and walkways safe. However, this salt, most commonly sodium chloride, has widespread detrimental ecological and economic effects that far outlast the season of its application. As millions of tons of salt are spread each winter in the US alone, much of it finds its way into freshwater systems via dissolution and runoff. Annual road salt use continues to increase, and lakes and streams have become increasingly saline in recent decades, arresting the development of a suite of sensitive freshwater species and disrupting the ecology of local waterways.
In addition, while road salt is used to de-ice roads across the nation, its effects on human health and property are disproportionately high for overburdened communities. Salt is a persistent pollutant and is neither removed from most civic water supplies nor naturally broken down in the environment. The resultant chronic corrosion to aging pipe infrastructure from source waters with excessive chloride can leach toxic heavy metals like lead into drinking water - a contributing factor in the drinking water crisis of Flint, MI. In addition, salt exposure drives the accumulation of property damage such as the rust on cars, which may exacerbate the financial stress experienced by many of the residents of these communities.
We aim to examine the relationship between road salt usage, land use, and community affluence by combining New Jersey Salt Watch data with state land use and demographic statistics. By exploring the interplay between environmental degradation and its consequences for public health, we hope to shed light on the importance of salt mitigation in municipalities across the US, but particularly those in urban overburdened communities. From our findings, we continue to recommend strategies for reducing road salt usage without sacrificing the safety of public spaces and roads during the colder months.